Why Karnataka poll has been kept on May 10, CEC reveals

New Delhi: Giving the reason for keeping the polling date on May 10, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Wednesday said it has been done with an aim to increase the participation of voters.

"We decided to keep the polling date on Wednesday. Because, people avail leave on a Monday or a Friday if elections are conducted close to weekly offs. Taking two days of leave would be difficult on Wednesday polling day," Kumar told reporters in a lighter vein in a press conference to announce polling dates for Karnataka.

The assembly polls in Karnataka will be held on May 10 and results declared on May 13.

Kumar said that more than 9.17 lakh first-time voters will be participating in the upcoming elections in Karnataka.

In a first, voting from home will be available for the people of Karnataka. This facility will be available for 80 plus citizens and people with disabilities, Kumar said.

He said that all arrangements will be made at the polling station for the convenience of senior citizens and PwD voters. There are 5.55 lakh PwD electors, he added.

For the upcoming assembly elections in Karnataka, 58,282 polling stations will be set up in 224 ACs, Kumar said. Out of the 58,282 polling stations, there are 24,063 and 34,219 PS in urban and rural areas, respectively, he said.

For enhanced voter participation, there will be 1,320 polling stations managed by women and 224 polling stations managed by youth, while 224 polling stations will be managed by PwD, Kumar said.

The average voter per polling station is 883, he added.

To address issues such as urban and youth apathy, ECI has launched a Hackathon named Electhon 2023, Kumar said. Over 746 teams have been registered so far to provide solutions to enhance the participation of urban and youth voters, he said. (UNI)