Ranchi EW News : As part of the previously scheduled program, a meeting was held today at the Chief Election Officer’s office at the headquarters level with administrators of all urban local bodies under the state’s jurisdiction. Administrators of urban local bodies from all districts participated in the meeting. The preparations for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in urban areas were reviewed during the meeting. Suggestions were taken from administrators of all urban local bodies regarding increasing voter turnout in cities, and strategies were formulated. Additionally, everyone was briefed on the relevant directives of the Election Commission regarding this matter.
On this occasion, the Chief Election Officer said that voter turnout in urban local bodies has been lower compared to rural areas in past general elections. We need to work on raising awareness among urban voters and reaching out to them about the importance of voting, along with planning for convenient voting methods to ensure that voters can cast their votes without any inconvenience. It was planned to convey information about direct elections and the importance of voting directly to ordinary urban citizens through municipal employees who maintain continuous contact with urban citizens.
During the meeting, along with urban local body administrators, the Director of State Urban Development Authority, Mr. Amit Kumar, and Ranchi Municipal Commissioner, Mr. Amit Kumar, also made extensive suggestions on increasing voter turnout in urban areas. Several suggestions were received, such as arranging free parking around polling booths on voting days, door-to-door awareness campaigns by municipal employees, and dissemination of election-related messages through municipal vehicles.
During this time, a program of dialogue and discussion was also organized. Electoral registration officers from urban areas were asked about the types of assistance they expect from municipal administrations, while urban local body administrators were asked about the coordination and support they expect from district election officers or the Chief Election Officer’s office. The Chief Election Officer appealed to everyone to make their best efforts to increase voter turnout in the urban areas of the state this time.
During the meeting, apart from administrators of all urban local bodies in the state and electoral registration officers from urban areas, Additional Chief Election Officer Ms. Neha Aroda, Joint Secretary Mr. Subodh Kumar, OSD Ms. Geeta Chaube, Deputy Secretary Mr. Devdas Datta, and Deputy Election Officer Headquarters Mr. Sanjay Kumar along with officials and staff from the Chief Election Officer’s office were present.
Sanjay Kumar Pandey
