Near China border, people at world's highest polling booth get inked today

Tucked high on the rugged Himalayas, way off the beaten track, this tiny village serves as a beacon of democracy. Located at an altitude of 15,265 feet, close to India-China border, Tashigang village falls in the picturesque Spiti Valley, and is a part of the Mandi Lok Sabha seat in Himachal Pradesh.

Tashigang boasts of some unique tags.

It is the highest polling station in the world. And, despite all the odds, it has clocked 100 per cent voting in the past. The village serves only 62 voters from Tashigang and nearby Gete village.

On Friday, Tashigang was declared a model polling station. It was originally set up for Lok Sabha elections in 2019 and interestingly, recorded a rare 100 per cent polling. This year, the people of Tashigang will play a part in a crucial battle between Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress’ Vikramaditya Singh.

As expected, this special booth also got special treatment in terms of poll preparations.

According to a report by news agency PTI, a satellite phone and runners have been deployed to relay polling data from the booth to the headquarters in Lahaul-Spiti district, which is an hour-and-half drive from Tashigang. Moreover, blankets and mattresses have been provided for the polling team and security personnel. A lunch was also organized for the voters.

Prem Lal is the booth officer for Tashigang this time.

Lal calls it a "duty and an honour". Earlier, he had conducted polls in the second-highest polling station in India at Hikkim, which is also a part of the Spiti Valley.

But there will be challenges.

“Thoda dikkat to hoga (there will be some difficulties),” Lal said, as he acknowledged the challenges ahead, especially for those unaccustomed to such difficult terrain with no mobile connectivity and limited power supply.

During the summer months, temperatures in Tashigang hovers between 5 and 20 degrees Celsius. But the mercury can drop due to sudden weather changes.

On May 30, snowfall welcomed the polling party and security personnel, with temperatures dropping to minus 5 degrees Celsius at night.

Winter is particularly harsh as temperature drops as low as minus 35 degrees Celsius.

“The hills remain buried in snow and the sole dirt road connecting Tashigang to Kaza is closed, confining families to their mud-and-brick homes for six months,” said Tanzin Takpa 54, a resident of Tashigang.

“A pregnant woman had to be carried on a yak to the hospital in Kaza at the time of delivery in February. She was lucky,” he said.

The problems are also exacerbated by the non-availability of a hospital or a clinic or a school or a market in Tashigang.

The residents travel to Kaza, around 30 kilometres away, for medical and other needs. However, this does not stop the voters from exercising their polling rights.

This is the fourth time that votes were cast at Tashigang.

After 2019, in November 2022, all the eligible voters exercised their franchise in the Assembly poll despite the immensely cold conditions.

In 2019 as well as in 2022, the booth reported 100 per cent polling.

At the voting booth, a selfie point has been set up against the backdrop of brown hills and a bright blue sky, depicting the village's spirit. “My vote, my right,” it says.

(With PTI inputs)