Balloons, Flowers At Model Booths As Noida Gears Up For "Memorable" Polls

Nearly 250 model polling booths are being prepared across Noida and Greater Noida for the February 10 assembly polls, Gautam Buddh Nagar officials said on Tuesday as they geared up to make voting a "memorable experience" for voters.

There will be 1,840 polling booths across Gautam Buddh Nagar, with 243 model booths including 20 managed by an all-women team and five managed by differently-abled officials, District Magistrate and District Election Officer Suhas L Yathiraj said.

Noting that the COVID-19 situation is largely under control in Gautam Buddh Nagar and vaccination going on full-swing, he appealed to the voters to come out in large numbers as adequate precautionary measures will be in place during the elections.

"The model booths are being prepared in an effort to increase the voting percentage in the district. These booths, many of them made in schools, will ensure Covid-appropriate behaviour with facilities for face masks, gloves and sanitisers also," Mr Yathiraj said during a virtual press conference.

"There will be waiting halls also in such model booths which will help in case more voters turn up at the booth at the same time. Special focus has been laid on beautification of these booths and some schools are beautifully decorating their premises with flowers and flowers and facility for light music during the voting day," he said.

The first time voters and voters above the age of 80 years will also be given 'Thank You' cards as part of the special efforts, he said.

"The objective is to make the election experience a memorable experience for everyone and bring alive the experience of election being a festival of republic," Mr Yathiraj said.

He said the voting percentage in Gautam Buddh Nagar adjoining Delhi in western Uttar Pradesh has remained low in the assembly election of 2017 and Lok Sabha election of 2019.

"The effort is to take this voting percentage to 90 per cent. The officials have been interacting with the resident welfare associations (RWAs), industrial associations etc in urban areas, while also contacting non-political civil societies in rural areas in order to ensure increased voter turnout during the polls," he said.

Gautam Buddh Nagar has three assembly constituencies of Noida, Dadri and Jewar where voting will take place on February 10. Result will be announced on March 10.

Noida has 6.90 lakh voters, Dadri has 5.86 lakh voters and Jewar has 3.46 lakh voters, according to officials.