Pune: Nine-year-old Baburao Akhara was among 41 eligible voters from remote village Burudmal under Baramati Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra, who for the first time did not have to travel a distance of 12 km to cast their vote, which was the case till the 2019 elections.
Voting took place on 11 out of 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the third phase on Tuesday.
This is the first time that the authorities have set up a polling station in a nearby school for eligible voters, so that we can participate in the festival of democracy-elections in our village.
Located 35 km from Bhor town in Velhe tehsil of Pune district, Burudmal is the smallest polling booth under Baramati Lok Sabha constituency with 41 eligible voters.
Till 3 pm on Tuesday, 39 voters, including one first-time voter, exercised their franchise, recording 95 per cent turnout.“This is the first time in our lifetime that a polling booth has been set up near our homes here in Burudamal. Till the last elections, we had to walk to the Sangvi Wellawade Khore (valley) to cast our vote, which I am from here. I am about 12 km away,” said 90-year-old Akhara, the senior-most voter in the group.
But this time, a polling booth was set up in a school located right next to our homes, giving us much-needed respite in the scorching heat, he said.
Mahesh Gore, a youth, claimed that this is the first time since independence that a polling booth has been set up in the village.
“Earlier, we used to cross two rivers on boats to reach Polin station, which was 12 km away.Voters, including senior citizens and women, faced difficulty in reaching there.
He said, "Keeping all these difficulties in mind, we had appealed to the sub-divisional officer of Bhor division to set up a polling centre. The administration took swift action, today 40 out of 41 voters cast their franchise here." Used."
According to villagers, Burudamal has a population of 150 and most of the young residents work in Mumbai.
“But more than 20 voters hired a bus from the Maharashtra capital and reached Burudmal to cast their votes,” he said.,
Priyanka, who worked in Mumbai, was part of the Akhara group.
"I am voting for the first time. I am very fortunate that I could vote at the polling booth in my village," she said.
Another voter, Laxman Akhara, said he felt very happy for his 90-year-old father who got a chance to cast his vote in his village.
He said, “Since the government provided us polling stations, we showed our commitment by voting 100 percent.,
Bhausaheb Turkunde, the only teacher working at the Zilla Parishad Primary School in Burudmal, said the area is difficult.
“Most of the time, people living here had to go to nearby villages to fetch goods, but now a motorable road has been built,” he said.
Sub-divisional officer Rajendra Kachare said he was impressed by the villagers' determination to participate in the voting process.
He said, “As per the guidance of our returning officer (for Baramati constituency) Kavita Dwivedi, a polling booth was set up here. 95 per cent of voters exercised their franchise at the polling booth."
Voting took place on 11 out of 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the third phase on Tuesday.
This is the first time that the authorities have set up a polling station in a nearby school for eligible voters, so that we can participate in the festival of democracy-elections in our village.
Located 35 km from Bhor town in Velhe tehsil of Pune district, Burudmal is the smallest polling booth under Baramati Lok Sabha constituency with 41 eligible voters.
Till 3 pm on Tuesday, 39 voters, including one first-time voter, exercised their franchise, recording 95 per cent turnout.“This is the first time in our lifetime that a polling booth has been set up near our homes here in Burudamal. Till the last elections, we had to walk to the Sangvi Wellawade Khore (valley) to cast our vote, which I am from here. I am about 12 km away,” said 90-year-old Akhara, the senior-most voter in the group.
But this time, a polling booth was set up in a school located right next to our homes, giving us much-needed respite in the scorching heat, he said.
Mahesh Gore, a youth, claimed that this is the first time since independence that a polling booth has been set up in the village.
“Earlier, we used to cross two rivers on boats to reach Polin station, which was 12 km away.Voters, including senior citizens and women, faced difficulty in reaching there.
He said, "Keeping all these difficulties in mind, we had appealed to the sub-divisional officer of Bhor division to set up a polling centre. The administration took swift action, today 40 out of 41 voters cast their franchise here." Used."
According to villagers, Burudamal has a population of 150 and most of the young residents work in Mumbai.
“But more than 20 voters hired a bus from the Maharashtra capital and reached Burudmal to cast their votes,” he said.,
Priyanka, who worked in Mumbai, was part of the Akhara group.
"I am voting for the first time. I am very fortunate that I could vote at the polling booth in my village," she said.
Another voter, Laxman Akhara, said he felt very happy for his 90-year-old father who got a chance to cast his vote in his village.
He said, “Since the government provided us polling stations, we showed our commitment by voting 100 percent.,
Bhausaheb Turkunde, the only teacher working at the Zilla Parishad Primary School in Burudmal, said the area is difficult.
“Most of the time, people living here had to go to nearby villages to fetch goods, but now a motorable road has been built,” he said.
Sub-divisional officer Rajendra Kachare said he was impressed by the villagers' determination to participate in the voting process.
He said, “As per the guidance of our returning officer (for Baramati constituency) Kavita Dwivedi, a polling booth was set up here. 95 per cent of voters exercised their franchise at the polling booth."
