Paraglider used to increase voter turnout in K'taka polls

The unique paragliding demo, as part of the Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation Plan, was held at Mangalore on Tuesday

Electoral authorities in Karnataka have employed the services of a paraglider affiliated to the Meghalaya Paragliding Association to create awareness about voting for the May 5 Assembly elections.

Nikolai Singh, who started this project, is flying across the state in the paraglider and dropping pamphlets to create awareness and publicity about elections.

This is the cheapest means to create awareness about elections as nearly 10 to 15 villages can be covered in a single day which is a laborious task if done by road, Singh told reporters at Mangalore.

The unique paragliding demo, as part of the Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation Plan (SVEEP), was held at Mangalore on Tuesday.

"A three-hour non-stop flight can cover somewhere between 150 km and 200 km," he said. A banner will also be hung from the paraglider relating to voter participation.

The aerial approach to increase voter turnout was employed during the Meghalaya Assembly elections last year, he said.