Poll panel keen for maximum voting by disabled voters

The Election Commission, through its state panels, would conduct intensive mapping aiming at getting the maximum number of disabled eligible voters to exercise their franchise in future elections including the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, an official said here on Monday.

"The Election Commission has asked all the states to conduct exhaustive maping of differently abled eligible voters so that maximum number of physically challenged eligible voters cast their votes in future elections including 2019 Lok Sabha polls," Tripura Chief Electoral Officer Sriram Taranikanti told the media here.

"Special arrangements including engagement of volunteers were always made in most of the polling stations for the differently abled eligible voters. Now the election authorities would conduct study whether any polling station was missing in arranging the special arrangements for them.

"Our target is to make user friendly special arrangements for each and every otherwise abled eligible voter in their respective polling stations," he added.

In Tripura, the Election Department would collect the number and other details of the state's disabled population from the Social Welfare Department.

Taranikanti also said that the Election Commission has also directed to conduct the special summary revision of the electoral rolls of all states and union territories with January 1, 2019, as qualifying date of age.

"After the several month long summary revision of the voters list, the final publication of the photo-affixed electoral rolls would be done in the first week of January next year and on the basis of that rolls, the Lok Sabha elections would be held," he said.

--IANS

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