Even as contestants in the Assembly elections are busy vote-hunting in rural and urban areas of Kolar district, all the while undeterred by the heat and dust, a team of artistes is engaged in creating awareness among the people about the importance of exercising their right to vote in a democracy.
The Election Commission, with the active participation of the district administration, has taken up the task of educating and encouraging voters to go to the polling booths on May 5, under the Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) programme.
While making people aware of the importance of voting is the motto of the programme, enhancing voting percentage in the district is another, says District Electoral Officer and Deputy Commissioner D.S. Vishwanath.
“The 73.09 per cent voting in the district in the 2008 Assembly elections was above the State average of 65 per cent. Notwithstanding that performance, the aim is to achieve 80 per cent polling this time,” Mr. Vishwanath said.
Streetplay
Since dramas and plays easily appeal to people, a streetplay, among other things, has been adopted to reach out to more people, he said.
The team of five artistes is visiting villages in the district and is providing entertainment as well as education on voting. The artistes straightaway start the performance with the issue of May 5 elections.
Highlighting the role of elections in a democratic set-up, the streetplay, with a mixture of music, dance, folk songs and conversations, makes an attempt to convey to the people the need to make democracy vibrant with their participation.
Launched on April 4, it is aimed to cover 125 villages before the curtain is drawn on it on May 2. The villages were selected based on voting percentage which was low in the 2008 elections.
