Call to youth: ‘Exercise right to vote’

On the eve of the National Voters Day, Chief Information Commissioner Ratnakar Gaikwad addressed the audience at Pune University's Namdeo Sabagriha, urging people to exercise their right to franchise.

Friday being a holiday, the state programme, complete with a video clip of Chief Election Commissioner V V Sampath speaking on the right to vote shown to the viewers, was conducted a day earlier. Electors Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) were also distributed on the occasion.

Vice-Chancellor Wasudeo Gade said: "The youth should be an active part of democracy to strengthen it further. High turnout of young eligible voters is a sign of healthy democracy."

Later, a district-level programme to mark the day was conducted at Wadia college where District Collector Vikas Deshmukh distributed voter I-cards.

The district has 66.81 lakh voters after the recent drive. This year's drive saw nearly 2.77 lakh registrations and 2.95 lakh deletions after corrections. According to Deputy Election Officer Apurva Wankhede, the number has decreased by 18,000 from last year. She said while 73 per cent I-cards had already been distributed in the district, another 3 lakh cards would be distributed as part of the current drive.

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