VELLORE: The election authorities have been making hassle-free arrangements for persons with disabilities (PWDs) to exercise their franchise in the general election to the Lok Sabha and snap polls to Assembly segments.
All the 13 Assembly segments in Vellore district, which has two Lok Sabha constituencies-Vellore and Arakkonam, have got a combined PWD electorate of 17,966. Persons with locomotor disability, visually and hearing impaired qualify for voting.
The PWD voters are spread across 1500 polling stations with a sizable population.
The poll authorities have initiated several steps to enable the PWDs to have easy access in the polling stations.
“As many as 1000 wheelchairs have been purchased and will be made available in polling stations where PWDs will move in to cast their votes. Each of the polling stations, with PWD electorate, will have one wheelchair,” District Election Officer (DEO) SA Raman said.
He added that volunteers from Nehru Yuva Kendra will be available in the polling stations to help the PWDs to cast their votes.
Election Observer to monitor the facilities for PWDs Anil Mesharam on Monday visited certain polling stations in Vellore district to check on the arrangements.
DEO Raman and other senior officials accompanied him. They explained him on the facilities being arranged for the PWDs.
The number of PWD electorate in the district is: Arakkonam-1125, Sholingur-1688, Katpadi-1093, Ranipet-1069, Arcot-2319, Vellore-678, Anaicut-1291, KV Kuppam- 1632, Gudiyattam- 1438, Ambur- 1540, Vaniyambadi- 1540, Jolarpet-1347, Tirupattur-1179.
The PWD population accounts for 88,041 in Vellore district, of them 17,966 are eligible for voting.
Three Assembly segments-Sholingur, Gudiyattam and Ambur- are also going to polls on April 18.