The Election Commission of India (ECI) has decided to provide 2,000 wheel chairs for the 10 assembly constituencies in Coimbatore district in the upcoming elections to enable physically challenged voters to reach polling booths without much hassle. This is the first time that the election department is taking such an initiative. Officials said that ramps would be put up in all the polling booths.
"We are going to provide the wheel chair facilities in the 234 assembly constituencies in the state. But our main focus will be on urban areas only," said chief electoral officer (CEO) Rajesh Lakhoni. He also added that it would help the physically challenged people to easily enter the polling stations to cast their votes.
Coimbatore district has 10 assembly constituencies - Coimbatore North, Coimbatore South, Singanallur, Kavundamapalayam, Thondamuthur, Sulur, Mettupalayam, Kinathukadavu, Pollachi and Valparai and the 10 assembles have 28,06,690 voters. The ECI strictly ordered all the district returning officers to take appropriate steps to set up ramps to help the physically challenged people.
The district has 2,892 polling stations. According to the sources from the rehabilitation department for differently-abled people, over 30,000 physically challenged people have registered their names with the department.
S Namburajan, state general secretary of Tamil Nadu Association for the rights of all type of differently-abled caregivers (TARATDAC), said that the association welcomed the announcement to provide wheel chairs in the polling stations.
"Earlier also various chief electoral officers (CEOs) had announced many schemes for differently-abled people during the elections. But none of them were fulfilled. There are some basic rules to set up ramps in the polling stations. But these rules were not followed by the election department. Many polling stations did not have proper slopes for physically challenged people," said Namburajan.
He also added that the polling station campus should have a separate toilet facility for disabled people. "We requested the ECI to allow the physically challenged peoples' vehicle near the polling stations. Normally their vehicles were stopped 100 metres away from the polling stations," said Namburajan.
"We are going to provide the wheel chair facilities in the 234 assembly constituencies in the state. But our main focus will be on urban areas only," said chief electoral officer (CEO) Rajesh Lakhoni. He also added that it would help the physically challenged people to easily enter the polling stations to cast their votes.
Coimbatore district has 10 assembly constituencies - Coimbatore North, Coimbatore South, Singanallur, Kavundamapalayam, Thondamuthur, Sulur, Mettupalayam, Kinathukadavu, Pollachi and Valparai and the 10 assembles have 28,06,690 voters. The ECI strictly ordered all the district returning officers to take appropriate steps to set up ramps to help the physically challenged people.
The district has 2,892 polling stations. According to the sources from the rehabilitation department for differently-abled people, over 30,000 physically challenged people have registered their names with the department.
S Namburajan, state general secretary of Tamil Nadu Association for the rights of all type of differently-abled caregivers (TARATDAC), said that the association welcomed the announcement to provide wheel chairs in the polling stations.
"Earlier also various chief electoral officers (CEOs) had announced many schemes for differently-abled people during the elections. But none of them were fulfilled. There are some basic rules to set up ramps in the polling stations. But these rules were not followed by the election department. Many polling stations did not have proper slopes for physically challenged people," said Namburajan.
He also added that the polling station campus should have a separate toilet facility for disabled people. "We requested the ECI to allow the physically challenged peoples' vehicle near the polling stations. Normally their vehicles were stopped 100 metres away from the polling stations," said Namburajan.