Familiarising voters with EVMs a welcome move

With approximately one month to go for the elections in Mumbai, it is important that voters are educated about the electoral process to increase awareness and promote informed participation

Mumbai Suburban District Election Commission officials carried dummy Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to housing societies to demonstrate their functioning. 

Citizens were given information about EVMs to clear doubts about the machines. This was done under the Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) umbrella and is a flagship programme of the Election Commission to promote voter education and participation in the elections.

With approximately one month to go for the elections in Mumbai, it is important that voters are educated about the electoral process to increase awareness and promote informed participation.

Every initiative to increasing awareness about EVMs and in fact, the entire electoral process is welcome. Today, Mumbai has mammoth housing societies. If officials in different constituencies can approach chairmen, housing society committees with this, it will bode well for the future. Even our clubs, though participation may be restricted to members can hold such sessions. In fact, credible and non-partisan programmes can be useful during these pre-election days. They should be encouraged and in fact, avenues can be created in colleges which may have many first-time voters. While colleges are on summer break, the institutions can surely reach out to relevant student age groups and arrange a special session on campus.

This is not about voting for a person or a particular party. Certain housing societies also have gatherings like meet your candidate for the area. 

There has been stress on the importance of voting. Now, there must also be an emphasis on the EVM procedure and how to get to your voting booth, facilities for immobile senior citizens or the specially abled. More clarity, more on point information certainly means more inclination to vote. Let those in charge and leaders, decision-makers in every field, realise that.

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