SURAT: The Election Commission of India would be spending approximately Rs4,400 per voter in Surat district, including city, during the assembly elections to be held on December 9. Surat district would have 4,397 polling booths and the ECI would spend Rs40,000 per booth.
An expense of Rs17.58 crore would be incurred by the ECI to facilitate 40 lakh voters in 16 Surat city and district assembly constituencies to exercise their right to vote and this would be highest amount ever spent in Surat.
Voting per cent has been varying during elections. The ECI wants to ensure maximum voting this time. Chief Electoral Officer of Surat Mahendra Patel will be sending personalized invitations to voters.
Patel told TOI, "We have instructed returning officers to send signed invitation cards to voters aged 18 to 30 and those above 60 requesting them to cast their votes at an assigned place. This would give a personal touch to the whole thing. Youngsters and senior citizens would feel that they too are an important part of the democratic process."
The personalized invitations would be given together with voter slips by the ECI staff. The ECI would also create awareness through advertisements. "It's a citizen's duty to exercise his or her right to vote when such a huge amount is being spent by the ECI on each voter," he said.
The expenses include amount spent on printing of voter slips to setting up of voting and counting stations with equipment, on people who will man the polling booths etc.
"We hope one day 100 per cent voting would take place here provided efforts to create awareness among the people continue," a senior citizen, who is resident of Vesu, said.
An expense of Rs17.58 crore would be incurred by the ECI to facilitate 40 lakh voters in 16 Surat city and district assembly constituencies to exercise their right to vote and this would be highest amount ever spent in Surat.
Voting per cent has been varying during elections. The ECI wants to ensure maximum voting this time. Chief Electoral Officer of Surat Mahendra Patel will be sending personalized invitations to voters.
Patel told TOI, "We have instructed returning officers to send signed invitation cards to voters aged 18 to 30 and those above 60 requesting them to cast their votes at an assigned place. This would give a personal touch to the whole thing. Youngsters and senior citizens would feel that they too are an important part of the democratic process."
The personalized invitations would be given together with voter slips by the ECI staff. The ECI would also create awareness through advertisements. "It's a citizen's duty to exercise his or her right to vote when such a huge amount is being spent by the ECI on each voter," he said.
The expenses include amount spent on printing of voter slips to setting up of voting and counting stations with equipment, on people who will man the polling booths etc.
"We hope one day 100 per cent voting would take place here provided efforts to create awareness among the people continue," a senior citizen, who is resident of Vesu, said.
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