Students of the Madurai Kamaraj University College were taught about their role and duties as a voter and its importance by representatives from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, on Monday.
The voters awareness programme, organised by the Field Publicity Office of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in the city had as many as 200 students from the MKU College in attendance.
In his welcome address, A. Chandramohan, Field Publicity Officer, said that for fair elections and to ensure good governance, it was imperative that all the students exercised their right to vote.
“Think and make the right decision when you vote. As a democracy, we decide who should govern the country and it is our duty to exercise our right smartly,” he also said.
The college Principal, S. Irulappan, posed a number of questions regarding the Lok Sabha elections to the students during an interaction. “As most of you will be first time voters, it is necessary to keep yourselves informed about the procedures involved,” he said.
EnthusiasmFielding questions on constituencies and the conditions candidates had to fulfil to contest in the elections, the students answered them with enthusiasm.
Representatives from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry which included S.E. Rajam, General Manager of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), and S. Ajitha, Station Director of All India Radio (AIR), Madurai, urged the students to cast their votes and stressed on the importance of being responsible citizens.
“To keep yourselves informed, there is information available across the electronic and print media about your constituency and candidates. Make sure that you read up and equip yourself with information about the same,” stated Ms. Rajam.
S. Sathyaseelan, Tahsildhar of North Madurai, who was also present at the event, said that the district administration was functioning with full strength to ensure that the elections were held smoothly.
“We have been cautioning people against receiving cash in exchange for votes and hope that as youngsters and first time voters, you all will not indulge in it,” he said.
