EC urged to provide Goa extra voting hour
Shoma Patnaik
Panaji: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, which are likely to be held in April-May, Goa’s electorate has increased to 11,66,939, according to the state office of the Chief Electoral Officer. The number of voters during the Goa assembly elections held in 2022 was 11,64,224.
In order to tackle the challenge of hot weather of April and May and to encourage people to go out and vote during the upcoming parliamentary elections, the office of the state’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) at Altinho has requested the Election Commission for an extra voting hour on polling day.
The CEO’s office is, meanwhile, gearing up for the elections, which could be announced any time now. Speaking to The Navhind Times, the Chief Electoral Officer for Goa Ramesh Verma said on Thursday that the electoral roll was last finalised on January 5, this year.
“It will continue to see changes in the coming weeks. The voter list is not yet closed and is being continuously updated based on the residents filling Forms 6, 7 and 8. The electoral roll is in the process of being finalised. Voters will continue to be added or revised until the last date of filing of nominations by the candidates,” said Verma.
He said the CEO’s office is actively trying to reach out to almost all the new voters in the state and has a target of 100% participation for the forthcoming 18th Lok Sabha elections.
Briefing on the groundwork done for the polls, Verma said the preparations began almost a year back. He said that as per the directions given by the Election Commission of India (ECI), the state office has received the manpower.
He also said officers are being trained and meetings have been conducted with heads of various government departments.
“Goa is fully prepared to hold the elections any day it is announced,” said Verma. He said the election machinery will ensure free and fair elections in the state.
“Compared to other areas in the country, Goa is a peaceful place for holding elections and we want the tradition to continue,” said Verma, who, in his previous postings, has performed election duty in the coal belt of Odisha.
“The electorate here is mostly educated. Looking at the decent behaviour of the residents, there are no difficulties in holding elections. The only challenge, if any, is the hot weather in the months of April and May. Past trends have shown that voter turnout is low during the afternoon hours. To motivate people to go out and vote, we have asked for an extra hour,” said Verma.
During the previous Lok Sabha elections held in 2019, Goa’s electorate size was 11,17,209 and the polling percentage was 76.4%. At the state assembly election held in 2022, the voter turnout was 79.6%.