Pimpri-Chinchwad Civic Polls Witness 58% Voter Turnout Despite Early Hurdles
Voters in Pimpri-Chinchwad faced several challenges as they cast their ballots to elect 126 corporators for the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation. The industrial city recorded a final turnout of approximately 58 percent. This figure marks a 6 percent decline from the 64 percent turnout seen during the 2017 elections.
Slow Start and Gradual Pickup in Voting
Polling began at 7:30 AM across 2,067 booths spread throughout the city. The initial hours saw sluggish activity. In the first two hours, only 6.56 percent of voters had cast their votes. The pace improved significantly between 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM, with turnout reaching 28.15 percent. After 1:30 PM, voter participation climbed further to 40 percent.
Enthusiastic citizens, including the elderly, ailing, and physically challenged, turned out to exercise their franchise. However, long queues formed as the day progressed, leading to traffic snarls near polling centers located on key arterial roads. Voters also struggled with parking their vehicles.
Technical Glitches and Administrative Issues
Electronic Voting Machines caused disruptions at several polling centers. At the start of polling, EVMs at a couple of centers failed to function. Even near closing time, one machine developed a problem. PCMC election officers stated their teams acted swiftly to replace the faulty machines and keep the process moving.
Many voters reported difficulty locating their assigned polling booths. Some individuals found their names missing from the voter lists at the booths they visited. Others discovered their names were listed in neighboring prabhags, causing confusion and extra travel.
Amol Deshpande, a resident of Pradhikaran, commented on the disorganization. He suggested election officials did not coordinate their online systems effectively.
Voter Experiences and Political Reactions
Elderly citizens faced particular challenges. They had to press EVM buttons four times to cast their votes, which proved difficult for some. BJP candidate Rahul Kalate from Wakad prabhag acknowledged the booth location issues. He noted that while some voters were disappointed, no major complaints emerged beyond these problems.
NCP leader Sarang Kamtekar reported an EVM failure in the Indrayani Nagar-Balajinagar area. The machine stopped working as soon as polling started, causing a thirty-minute delay until officials provided a replacement.
In Bhosari, voters encountered issues with the ink marking on their fingers disappearing. NCP leader Ajit Gavhane expressed concern that some irritated voters might have returned home without voting due to these frustrations.
Shatrughan Kate, president of the Pimpri-Chinchwad BJP unit, highlighted discrepancies in booth numbers. The numbers listed on voter slips often differed from the actual locations, causing unnecessary running around. He also noted a lack of adequate wheelchairs at some centers.
Citizen Feedback and Official Response
Domnic Lobo, who voted in Sangvi, pointed out the complexity of voting for four candidates. He emphasized that the process should be simpler, especially for aged and illiterate citizens. Lobo also raised concerns about the transparency of the voting system.
Iklas Sayeed, an Akurdi voter, reported a minor incident where two individuals were caught attempting to vote twice. Party workers alerted the police, who intervened promptly.
Municipal Commissioner Shravan Hardikar oversaw the election process. He described the voting as generally smooth and peaceful. Hardikar acknowledged some EVM complaints but stressed they were resolved quickly. He reported that 75 percent of centers completed polling on time, while 25 percent continued until 8 PM.
Regarding the slow voting process, Hardikar explained that elderly and uneducated voters required extra time and explanation to cast votes for four candidates. He confirmed only one complaint about fading ink and instructed officials to apply thicker markings.
Pimpri-Chinchwad has a total of 17.13 lakh registered voters. Areas like Wakad, Ravet, Chinchwad, Moshi, and Bhosari saw citizens of all ages heading to the polls. Despite the challenges, the election concluded without major incidents, maintaining the democratic spirit of the industrial city.
