Centurions to turn brand ambassadors for Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls

BHOPAL: Over 120 centurions residing in Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh could be the ideal brand ambassadors for increasing the voter turnout in the Assembly polls.

At a time when there are increasing reports of poll boycott by people over various development and local issues, the centurions in this West MP district are living examples of people’s unflinching faith in electoral democracy.

As part of efforts to boost poll percentages, the Mandsaur district administration and police organized a special training camp for aged voters recently, where the golden oldies were rendered training on how to vote with the combination of EVMs and VVPATs.

"As many as 50 out of the 121 centurions residing the district, who have unfailingly voted in all elections, starting with the 1952 general elections were honoured at a special camp recently. We sent our beat constables to the houses of our centurion voters all across the district and brought them to the training camp, where they were trained in using the EVMs and VVPATs," SP Mandsaur district Manoj Kumar Singh told TNIE.

Not only were the centurions and other elderly voters taken to the training camp with police escort, but their medical check-up was done too.

They were also promised all necessary facilities like wheel-chairs when they come to vote in the coming year-end Assembly polls.

"If necessary, we'll send teams to their houses on polling day and again convince them to vote in the festival of democracy. We'll soon try and convince the remaining centurions also to for train in use of EVMs and VVPATs," he added.

The Election Commission of India is promoting new initiatives to increase polling percentage everywhere. In the 2008 and 2013 Assembly polls, the polling percentage in four Assembly seats of Mandsaur has been between 75 and 80 per cent.