PATHANAMTHITTA: A demand has been raised to relocate a polling booth atop a hillock in Pathanamthitta, where aged and specially-abled voters have been relying on dollies (palanquin-type carriages) for nearly a decade.
Although the dolly system, the first of its kind in the state for the democratic exercise, has been used in five consecutive elections (local bodies, assembly, and parliament), voters fear the steep climb to reach Sree Narayana Satha Valsara Memorial LP School at Mundukottackal.
Recently, municipal councillor Ancy Thomas handed over a petition to District Collector Prem Krishnan, demanding the relocation of the polling station. In the petition submitted to the district collector, it was requested that the polling centre be shifted as soon as possible for the convenience of voters.
"One has to climb over 60 steep steps, to reach the polling station. Elderly people, heart patients and people with paralysis face difficulties in reaching the polling booth even in dollies. Voters often experience dizziness and nausea on their journey uphill. There were incidents of people falling from the dollies as well as having to be hospitalised due to blood pressure variations," the councillor said.
In the Lok Sabha elections last year, over 80 people relied on the service of dollies to cast their ballot. As there was no option to change the booths due to the unavailability of facilities and with no roads nearby, dollies were the only option to reach the polling booth.
The dolly service was introduced by the state government in 2015 after multiple interventions and complaints, which eventually reached the Kerala High Court. Saji K Simon, a local Congress leader, filed a plea in the High Court, resulting in the court’s order favoring the implementation of the dolly service.
The challenge of finding alternative polling stations for three booths 223, 224, and 225, each with over 1,000 voters, was highlighted as a difficult task.