Gujarat to vote in two phases on Dec 1 & 5

Gujarat will go to polls in two phases on December 1 and 5 while the counting of votes will start on December 8 along with that of Himachal Pradesh, the Election Commission of India announced on Thursday.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said that the poll body was going the extra mile to make voting accessible and comfortable for all and a special observer would monitor Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat for women and the elderly.

“For an enhanced voting experience, 1,274 polling stations will be completely managed by women and security staff. For the first time, 33 polling stations will be set up and managed by the youngest available polling agents with the objective of encouraging the youth,” Kumar said.

Several measures have been taken to include everyone in the voting process. There will be a mobile shipping container as a poll station in a particular area to facilitate polling, Kumar said.

“We shall also go to an area which has one registered voter. Teams will go via boat to an island that has 832 houses with over 4,000 voters,” he added.

Kumar said particular focus would be on senior citizens, with teams even going to their homes if necessary.