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80+ voters can vote from home via postal ballot: Uttarakhand election official
Uttarakhand’s chief electoral officer (CEO) Sowjanya said postal ballot can be used voters above the age of 80 and persons with disabilities in next year’s Uttarakhand elections.
DEHRADUN: Voters above the age of 80 and persons with disabilities will have the facility to cast their votes from home through postal ballot, said Uttarakhand’s chief electoral officer (CEO) Sowjanya on Tuesday in Dehradun.
“This facility will be provided for the first time in the state,” Sowjanya, who goes by only one name, announced at a media briefing on the pre-revision activities for the voters’ list ahead of the state assembly elections to be held early 2022.
“The aforementioned category of voters should be in the voter-list of the state and to avail the facility, have to apply with all the required details to the respective returning officer,” she said, adding that the facility will also be available to those down with Covid-19 at the day of polling.,
“As per data available with the Election Commission, out of total 78,46,000 voters in the state, 1,65,113 voters are above 80 years of age including 71,537 males and 93,576 females. The differently-abled voters are numbered at 53,900 including 34,832 males and 19,067 female,” she said.
The state’s top election official also said 1,32,291 voters have been added to the voters’ list from January 15 this year till October 12.
Also, she said, 1,01,483 names were deleted for various reasons resulting in only 30,808 new names in the voters’ list. “The state has a total of 78,46,000 voters in the state including 40,87,018 males and 37,58,731 females,” she said.
The official, speaking on the challenging exercise to register about 3.52 lakh eligible youth of the 18-19 years age group in the voters’ list, urged political parties and others to spread awareness.
She said there are a total of 11,647 polling booths in the state but this number could change before the final publication of final electoral roll on January 5 next year for the next assembly elections.
