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UCPMA elections today: Candidates make last-ditch efforts to woo voters
With elections for the United Cycle and Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA) scheduled to be held on Friday, candidates of both rival groups made last-ditch efforts to woo the voters on Thursday
With elections for the United Cycle and Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA) scheduled to be held on Friday, candidates of both rival groups made last-ditch efforts to woo the voters on Thursday. The voting will be held from 9am to 5pm at UCPMA office at Gill Road. It is mandatory for the members to carry valid identity cards issues by the association for voting.
In their manifestos, both DS Chawla and Sachdeva groups assured the members that they will oppose the shifting of industries from the mix land use areas in 2023 as proposed in the master plan for the city.
The groups also made promises to upgrade the local industry to manufacture high-end cycles and parts in the city industrial hub and reduce imports from China. The candidates also said that a help desk will be set up for the association, and recognition will be provided to the members and their products at the national and international level through the association’s website. The candidates and their supporters remained busy with door-to-door campaigning on Thursday and invited their supporters for cocktail parties that have been going on for the last few days as part of the campaign. They have also been taking a dig at the rival groups on social media sites. Avtar Bhogal, Sachdeva group’s candidate for the post of president, said, “The members should choose our group for the betterment and development of the industry which took a backseat during Chawla’s last tenure. We will work on upgrading the industry by working for the welfare of the members.”
Meanwhile, DS Chawla, the current president and Chawla group’s candidate for the post of president, said, “I will continue to work for the betterment of the industry. After the members of the rival group resorted to violence during the annual general meeting (AGM) on August 18, I believe they will choose our team,” said Chawla.
Chawla was allegedly thrashed and his turban was tossed by the rival group during the AGM. The police had also booked 31 persons of the rival group after the incident. The rival group had refuted the allegations. The current executive is divided into two groups. While current president DS Chawla and secretary Harsimarjit Singh Lucky comprise one group, the other group consists of the rest of the six executive members of the association led by general secretary Manjinder Sachdeva. Former presidents of the association including Charanjit Vishwakarma, Inderjit Navyug and senior members of the association have also formed United Alliance group in support of Sachdeva group.
QR code on ballot papers
To ensure fair conduct of elections, the elections committee has decided to have QR codes on the ballot papers to avoid bogus voting. Parupkar Singh Ghumman, the presiding officer for the elections, said that there are 1,668 eligible voters this year, and 2,000 ballot papers with QR codes have been printed.
“Only the voters will be allowed to enter the voting area after thorough checking to avoid impersonation, bogus voting, etc. The candidates have been allowed to set up their tents at a certain area outside the association’s office,” he said. “After the voting process is over, the ballot papers that are not used will also be counted. If the total number of ballot papers increases from 2,000, we will be able to catch bogus votes. The police force and private security will also be deployed to avoid any untoward incident,” Ghumman.
