Bangalore, April 22 (Inditop) Which is my new constituency? Where will I get my voter ID card from? How can I correct my name in the voter list?
Queries like these, which run into about 6,000 every day, are literally raining at the help-line centre set up by the election authorities in India’s Tech hub Bangalore, which votes Thursday.
The 24X7 helpline number 22228888 started April 10 will receive calls till polling ends Thursday. The helpline located at Yeshwanthpur is manned by 100 people.
The helpline has been exclusively set up for voters of Bangalore Central, Bangalore Rural, Bangalore South and Bangalore North constituencies.
“Within two days of starting the helpline, we have started getting around 6,000 calls a day. Right from confused voters to government employees, who have been deputed on election duty, we’re flooded with calls,” Darshan Chinnappa, director of Trans Act BPO Service India Pvt. Ltd., told IANS.
The helpline is a collaborative effort of Karnataka election authorities, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) and Trans Act BPO Service India Pvt. Ltd.
Queries being addressed include voters’ ID cards, mistakes in names, address or age and the constituencies the callers belong to and their polling booths post-delimitation.
“With areas being re-configured after delimitation, a recurring question that voters are asking is about the status of their constituency and where their vote falls,” said Chinnappa.
After delimitation, the new Bangalore Central constituency was created and Kanakapura constituency has become Bangalore Rural.
Voters appreciated the utility of the help-line, saying it had helped them a lot.
“The centre helped me clear my doubts regarding the re-figuring of my constituency and our status after the delimitation,” said Senthil R., a resident of Gandhinagar, which has now been incorporated into Bangalore Central from Bangalore North.
Moreover, Karnataka State Human Rights Council (KSHRC) in association with the Karnataka election authorities and the Karnataka police April 15 launched a 24X7 helpline where voters can report any illegal practices by dialling 080-32989007.
S.K. Vivekananda, KSHRC state president said: “Any illegal and unconstitutional practices observed by our team will be immediately brought to the notice of returning officers of the respective areas.”
“The public if they come across any sort of illegal practices can inform us and we would immediately take the issue to the Election Commission,” he added. This facility will function till April 24.
rounak