Over 11 lakh more voters in Pune district compared to 2019 Maha assembly elections
The Pune district election branch has attributed the increase in the number of voters to a large number of citizens coming to Pune from different parts of the state and country for education, employment and business
With the total number of voters in Pune district (Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad and Pune rural) having risen to over 88 lakh from over 77 lakh in the last state assembly election in 2019, the total number of voters in Pune district has increased by over 11 lakh in the past five years.
The Pune district election branch has attributed the increase in the number of voters to a large number of citizens coming to Pune from different parts of the state and country for education, employment and business. It has therefore been highlighted that the majority of urbanisation in Maharashtra is taking place in Pune district.
Professor Damodar Padhye, a city urbanisation expert, said, “Pune is known as the most important metropolis in the state after Mumbai. Ambitious projects such as two Ring Roads, the proposed international airport at Purandar, and the metro are being implemented in Pune. There is a network of dams in the Pune district area. There are five major rivers in the district and as many as 25 dams have been constructed on their waters. These quench the thirst of the people of Pune apart from providing water for agriculture in the rural areas of the district. Due to various reasons like employment guarantee, abundance of water, and security, a large amount of investment is being made in Pune from home and abroad.”
“As a result, employment has increased and the number of people coming to Pune from different parts of the state and country is increasing as there is a guarantee of getting work. The same is reflected in the voter list of the state assembly elections,” Padhye said.
Shripad Kshirsagar, a citizen, said, “Three years ago, I shifted to Pune along with my family from Solapur as I got a permanent job here in Pune. Hence, three members of our family have changed their voting address to Kasba constituency.”
In the last state assembly elections in 2019, the total number of voters in the 21 assembly constituencies including eight in Pune city, three in Pimpri-Chinchwad, and 10 in the remaining rural areas was 7,729,217. Whereas this year, the number of voters in Pune district has reached 8,849,590. Therefore, there has been an increase of 1,120,373 voters in Pune in the last five years.