Voter turnout graph going down since past three decades: Data

The trend has not been impressive in the past tw and half decades where turnout hasn’t crossed 55 per cent. On this background, the election commission is taking extra efforts this time to improve police percentage

PUNE The voter turnout for Pune Lok Sabha constituency has been fluctuating between a low of 40.66 per cent in 2009 and a high of 69.64 per cent votes in 1967, as per data shared by the district administration.

Suhas Diwase, district collector, said that the district administration in the past and the present has been taking numerous drives to increase voter enrolment in the society. (REPRESENTATIVE PIC)

The trend has not been impressive in the past tw and half decades where turnout hasn’t crossed 55 per cent. On this background, the election commission is taking extra efforts this time to improve police percentage.

Suhas Diwase, district collector, said that the district administration in the past and the present has been taking numerous drives to increase voter enrolment in the society.

“The district administration is taking all efforts to disseminate information on the importance of voting and voter registration through different platforms. This year, a special rally aimed at empowering and educating nearly 700 transgender individuals about the crucial role they play in shaping democracy through active participation in elections was also held,” he said.

At the same time, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has also started voters awareness campaign in the Pune city.

A two-day state-level workshop of sweep nodal officers on voting awareness in view of the Lok Sabha elections was also organised at Yashada on behalf of the Election Commission of India and Chief Electoral Officer Maharashtra recently.

S Chokkalinga, chief electoral officer of the state; Santosh Ajmera, election commission of India sweep director; Diwase, and others were present.

The workshop included a detailed discussion on the innovative activities being implemented in different districts, along with giving information about the activities undertaken by the Election Commission under the sweep initiative to increase voting in the constituencies and to increase the participation of urban citizens in the electoral process.

In 2009 Pune recorded lowest turnout when the seat was bagged by Congress Party contender Suresh Kalmdi while in 1967, the seat was won by SM Joshi on a Samyukta Samajwadi party ticket.

Pune Lok Sabha seat came into being in 1951 when two members of parliament were sent to Lok Sabha from Pune Central and Pune South.

Indian National Congress candidate Gadgil Narhar Vishnu with 49.53 per cent votes got elected to the Lok Sabha from the central seat while Maydeo Indira Anant, also from the Congress party made it to the Lok Sabha from Pune South with 47.32 % of votes.

According to the data released by the district election office, polling percentage for Pune Lok Sabha seat has fallen down since 2004 during which 47.82 % polling was recorded. Similarly, in 2009, 40.66 % was recorded , 54.14 % in 2014 and 49.87 % was recorded in 2019.

The figures shared by the election office point out that higher polling percentage above sixty was recorded only seven times. In 1957, it was 68.14 %, in 1962 it was 64.04 %, in 1967 it was69.64, in 1971 it was 67.95%, in 1977 it was 62.98 %, in 1984 it was 66.38 percent and during 1989 it was 64.21 per cent.