Month-long voter awareness drive in Chamarajanagar to be on till May 5

Mysuru: Chamarajanagar district administration, zilla panchayat and Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) committee have launched month-long voter awareness drive till May 5 across the district.
It has named Rajyotsava awardee Sologira Madamma as its brand ambassador, who belongs to Soliga tribal community, to sensitise the voters in tribal-dominated border district. The drive began from April 7 from the district headquarters.
It has focused on educating masses by holding a series of rallies, holding special drives at students hostels, public places, wall writings and street plays highlighting the importance of voting rights for good governance in all 65 gram panchayat headquarters.
A mobile van fitted with LED screen to display the audio and video clips, including brand ambassador Soligara Madamma, several cinema celebrities, cricketers highlighting the importance of voting is also touring all four assembly segments till the drive ends.
It also focused on improving voting in over 98 polling booths that recorded poor turnout in previous assembly polls across the district. In 2018 assembly polls, as many as 98 polling booths of the district recorded low voter turnout below 80 per cent against the state election commission guidelines.
Chamarajanagar assembly segment registered 80.41 per cent polling in 2018 assembly polls. While Gundlupet recorded 87.50 per cent, Kollegal 79.15 per cent and Hanur 81.16 per cent.
As over 90 polling booths recorded low voter turnout, including urban limits of Chamarajanagar and Hanur, the district administration and District Sveep Committee have given much attention to improve the percentage of voting for 2023 assembly polls by sensitising the voters during this drive, said zilla panchayat CEO S Poovitha, who is also District SVEEP committee head.
She said that the committee has also decided to set up five theme-based polling booths to attract voters, including sakhi polling booths to attract women voters, a special polling booth for different abled voters in every assembly segments.
As most of the SSLC students are appearing for exams now, the committee has also decided to make SSLC students write letters to their parents after the exams , appealing to them to exercise their franchise for better governance.
Chamarajanagar district other Backward Classes officer Bindya who is also SVEEP committee member, said that the committee held one round of candlelight voters awareness drive in over 146 state-run hostels to sensitise the young voters across the district. The committee has also spread awareness through social media, print and electronic media, she said.