Ka polling station in Kinnaur registers 112.5% voting

Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner Abid Hussain Sadiq said that a total of 18 people (14 voters and 4 polling personnel) exercised their franchise at the Ka polling station

Located at the height of 9,000 feet above sea level in the tribal Kinnaur district, Ka polling station, recorded 112.5% polling in the election to Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections held on November 12.

Voters show their ink-marked fingers after casting their votes for Himachal Pradesh assembly elections at a polling booth in Tashigang in Kinnaur on Saturday. Tashigang is the world's highest polling station at 15,256 feet. (ANI)

Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner Abid Hussain Sadiq said that a total of 18 people exercised their franchise at the Ka polling station.

Ka was the polling station having the least number of voters in the state, with just 16 registered voters.

“A total of 18 voters exercised their vote in this polling station. There are a total of 16 voters in Ka polling station, including 11 women and 5 men, of which nine women and all men voters exercised their franchise,” he said.

Apart from this, four polling personnel posted voted through Election Duty Certificate (EDC), due to which the voter turnout was recorded at 112.5%, he added.

Interestingly, the world’s highest polling booth Tashigang (15,265 feet) recorded 100% voting defying adverse weather conditions, showing the way to other parts of the state, specifically the urban areas.

Chasak Bhatori in the Bharmaur assembly segment in Chamba district recorded a turnout of 75.26% despite the polling party needing to walk a distance of 14 km, at a height of 11,948 feet.

Average voter turnout in 85 polling stations set up above 10,000 feet was close to the state average of 73.5 %, despite all odds.

Himachal Pradesh recorded the lowest polling percentage of 62.53 % in Shimla.

However, despite all efforts, urban apathy in Himachal Pradesh has again dampened the figure. Though 75.6% voter turnout is the highest till now for the state, higher participation from urban areas could have helped achieve a higher record-breaking turnout. “Voter turnout in Shimla was not only the lowest in the state (62.53%) but has declined by 1.4% than the last election in 2017,” the official said.