BHUBANESWAR: Ahead of the elections, campuses of higher educational institutions are abuzz with campaigns focusing on youths who would cast their franchise for the first time this year.
Aware of the fact that first-time voters could be a significant factor influencing the outcome of elections, political parties have started reaching out to this population that is primarily in colleges and universities.
While some parties are discussing issues that have affected the youths since 2019 as far as education and employment are concerned, others want to ensure the new voters take part in shaping the democratic fabric of the state and nation. The BJD, BJP and the Congress have deputed their student wings for the job.
As per the current electoral profile of the state announced by the chief electoral officer (CEO) recently, there are 7.99 lakh first-time voters (in the 18 to 19 age group), comprising around 2.39 per cent of the total 3.34 crore voters. This percentage, as per the CEO, is even more than the national average. Also, this marks a significant rise in the registration of first-time voters as their number was 5.45 lakh during 2019 elections.
BJD’s Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD) has initiated a panchayat-level drive to ensure all eligible youths are registered in the electoral roll and they exercise their voting right in the elections. “We are creating awareness among the first-time voters about the various schemes, scholarships launched by the party for their educational benefit through our student committees that have been formed at panchayat level,” said BCJD head Debi Tripathy.
Similarly, the BJP’s student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has launched a ‘Campus Chalo Abhiyan’ which student leaders of the party said, is aimed at ensuring there is 100 pc voting from the first-time voters, and the new voters say no to NOTA (none of the above). ABVP Odisha president Arajeet Pattnayak said from March 25 till the elections, the students’ wing will also organise flash mobs, signature campaigns and street corner meetings at all colleges with focus on the two aforementioned points.
On the other hand, Congress’ National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) is raising issues of lack of teachers in higher educational institutions, absence of student unions and ragging among the first-time voters in various campuses through its campaign ‘Students Can Bring Change’.
Stating that the new voters are equally important in determining the election results, state president of NSUI Yashir Nawaz said their campaign has been formulated based on the three issues after a careful study of all factors that are affecting higher education in the state. “Our campaign is not a mere criticism of BJD or BJP as far as education and employment of youths are concerned,” he added.
FOR NEW AGE VOTERS
First-time voters in state comprise 7.99 lakh of the total 3.34 cr voters, which is 2.39 pc
As per the CEO, this is even more than national average
‘Campus chalo abhiyan’ launched by ABVP to ensure 100 pc voting from first-time voters
BJD’s Biju Chhatra Janata Dal to ensure eligible voters are registered in the electoral roll
Congress’ NSUI highlighting issues of teacher shortage, ragging through ‘Students can bring change’ campaign