First-time voters in Maharashtra at a dismal 6 percent

Posters by Collector, District Election Officer, Mumbai Suburban District, target a cross-section of voters

Despite several initiatives taken up by the Election Commission and affiliated NGOs, only 6.35 percent of the population between 18 and 19 years of age in Maharashtra have registered as first-time voters this year. As for Mumbai, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's data on the number of births in Mumbai in 2000 which is a conservative estimate of the current population in the 18-19 years bracket, points to only 38 percent of them being listed in the electoral rolls.

Of the 94.6 lakh registered voters in Mumbai district, only 75,614 are first-time voters. Officials of the Election Commission find this a worrying sign since they had expected the number to be significantly higher. "We had reached out to all the colleges in Mumbai and given them forms to be handed out to students who are eligible to vote. However, many of the forms we received were not from the city and they have been forwarded to the relevant offices. This year, we had expected to get at least 22 to 23 lakh first-time voters across the state to be listed in the electoral roll," said an official of the Election Commission for Mumbai City.

Only 17,404 voters in Mumbai City belong to the 18-19 years age group while in the suburban constituencies, the figure stands at 58,210 voters. In Mumbai city as well as suburban, the highest number of voters belong to the 40-49 years age group (16.59 lakh in suburban and 5.83 lakh in the city). Officials from the BMC's health department said that in 2000, around 2,03,695 births were recorded who would now turn 18 years and thus be eligible to vote.

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Come one, come all

To woo young voters, the Election Commission has been spreading awareness about the upcoming elections and have designed posters to appeal to all categories of people, from first-time voters to transgenders. Officials said that the target for this year has been set at achieving a 65 per cent voter turnout. In 2009, the voter turnout in the Lok Sabha elections stood at 41 per cent while in 2014, around 51 per cent of voters had shown up.

Last week, the Election Commission took up training modules at 600 colleges and 1,000 schools to encourage people to vote. Various NGOs like VCAN will also take up initiatives with the help of campus ambassadors at colleges to encourage first-time voters to vote.

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EC files complaint against NCP's Munde

The Election Commission has filed a complaint with the Marine Drive police station on Monday evening against NCP leader Dhananjay Munde for violation of model code of conduct. The complaint was recorded as a diary entry. According to the EC, Munde who is the leader of opposition in the legislative council, had organised a press conference at his official residence where he released the party's manifesto. "We discussed the matter with the district election officer. There is a violation of the code on conduct but no offence has been committed. Thus, an entry has been made in the station diary," said a senior police officer.

legislative council, had organised a press conference at his official residence where he released the party's manifesto. "We discussed the matter with the district election officer. There is a violation of the code on conduct but no offence has been committed. Thus, an entry has been made in the station diary," said a senior police officer.

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Electoral statistics

• Projected Population of Maharashtra: 8,60,27,522
• Projected Population of Mumbai City: 1,37,87,017
• Voters listed in Electoral Roll: 94,61,108
• Voters between 18-19 years enrolled: 75,614
• No. of births registered in 2000: 2,03,695

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