Having conducted a review meeting with all the district collectors in Gujarat, the Election Commission (EC) on Saturday said that it is going to step up measures to improve voter turnout through its Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) program.
"The voter turnout in Gujarat, which is below 60%, has been a constant challenge for us. However, we are taking increased amount of measures such as through the SVEEP program to improve the voter turnout in Gujarat. Through the program, we intend to work on three areas, namely information, motivation and facilitation of voters," said Akshay Raut, director general, Election Commission of India (EC).
Apart from low voter turnout, Raut said that the EC is also facing a challenge among women, with the gender gap being high among voters.
"Consistently, women in Gujarat have stayed away from voting. To encourage them, we have roped in two new national icons who will debut with the Gujarat state assembly elections. They are badminton player Saina Nehwal and boxing champion Mary Kom, apart from the earlier two icons former president APJ Abdul Kalam and Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni," Raut added.
Meanwhile, Raut added that for the first time, about 30% or 13,500 polling stations in Gujarat will see special focus under SVEEP program due to their low voter turnout.