For the last two weeks, a group of 15 young men, all aged between 18 and 40 years, have been going door-to-door at Chinnakumarapalayam panchayat.
Their mission is to ensure all the eligible voters cast their vote and discourage the electorate from taking money to vote.
Located at the foothills of the Western Ghats, on the border of Coimbatore and Erode districts, the panchayat has seven villages.
Industries
The panchayat, which is part of Mettupalayam Assembly constituency, has 3,000 voters and almost 50 per cent of them work in industries outside the village. “We rang up each of them personally and asked them to come home on election day. Those living in cities such as Bengaluru never used to come for voting. This year, we have requested all of them to vote,” says V. Siva Illango, who heads Village Development Organisation, which has taken up the campaign.
In the past too the organisation had taken up voter awareness campaigns. This year, it set up audio systems and played messages asking people to cast their vote.
Money for voting
Apart from these, the members of the organisation decided to discourage voters from taking money for voting.
On distribution of cash for votes, he says, “In our village, for many, expecting money to vote is like expecting wages for work.”
There are people who used to go to the point of distribution to collect money. “When we went door-to-door, women were upset with us about the campaign. A family of five expected to earn Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 3,000. They see the campaign as an effort that will affect their earning,” he says.
Agriculture is the main occupation in the panchayat. While youngsters are able to understand the significance of ethical voting, others are not able to. “People do not realise that it is wrong to take money for votes,” he says.
However, with all the efforts this year, he is hopeful of better turnout of voters.
Their mission is to ensure all the eligible voters cast their vote and discourage the electorate from taking money to vote.
Located at the foothills of the Western Ghats, on the border of Coimbatore and Erode districts, the panchayat has seven villages.
Industries
The panchayat, which is part of Mettupalayam Assembly constituency, has 3,000 voters and almost 50 per cent of them work in industries outside the village. “We rang up each of them personally and asked them to come home on election day. Those living in cities such as Bengaluru never used to come for voting. This year, we have requested all of them to vote,” says V. Siva Illango, who heads Village Development Organisation, which has taken up the campaign.
In the past too the organisation had taken up voter awareness campaigns. This year, it set up audio systems and played messages asking people to cast their vote.
Money for voting
Apart from these, the members of the organisation decided to discourage voters from taking money for voting.
On distribution of cash for votes, he says, “In our village, for many, expecting money to vote is like expecting wages for work.”
There are people who used to go to the point of distribution to collect money. “When we went door-to-door, women were upset with us about the campaign. A family of five expected to earn Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 3,000. They see the campaign as an effort that will affect their earning,” he says.
Agriculture is the main occupation in the panchayat. While youngsters are able to understand the significance of ethical voting, others are not able to. “People do not realise that it is wrong to take money for votes,” he says.
However, with all the efforts this year, he is hopeful of better turnout of voters.