The SMS-based system to help the public avoid standing in long queues at polling stations received impressive response from voters on Thursday. While many were happy with the new system, a few felt that publicity given to it was insufficient.
The Hassan district administration introduced the SMS-based system to tell voters about the number of people waiting in queue at polling stations in the Hassan Assembly segment limits. According to the district administration, over 600 voters sent SMSs till 4 p.m. on Thursday.
Brunda K., a first-time voter from Channapatna, sent an SMS before leaving to the polling station around 1 p.m. She got a reply within seconds saying only two people were in the queue. “The system helped avoid waiting in long queues in the heat,” she said.
For Ganesh Somayaji of Hemavati Nagar, the system provided him the opportunity to be the first to cast the vote at his polling station. He sent an SMS to the polling station in Hemavati Nagar around 7 a.m. The reply said ‘zero’. He rushed to the polling station and cast his vote.
Booth-level officers (BLOs) updated the status of the queue from 265 booths in Hassan. The data collected from BLOs was also posted on the official website >http://varthabhavanhassan.com .
Voters in rural areas were less aware of the system compared to those in the city. There were 40 persons waiting to cast their vote at Ugane around 3 p.m. When asked if they had checked the status of the queue before heading to the polling station, they said they had no information about such a system.
