Delhi Elections 2024: The pink booths set up by the State Election Commission (SEC) in the national capital attracted scores of women as they stepped out in large number to vote in the Lok Sabha elections on Saturday.
According to a senior election official, who did not wish to be named, the pink booths have a handmade selfie point to engage the young women in the city.
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“We have deployed only women staff in the polling stations dedicated to the female voters,” he said.
Sarita Devi, 50, expressed her joy saying that she does not have to stand in queue and wait for long to cast her vote in the scorching heat thanks to the pink booths in the area.
She cast her vote at Victoria Girls’ Senior Secondary School which has one of the 71 pink booths across the national capital.
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“I am very happy to cast my vote today. These pink booths help us and encourage us to step out to vote as we don’t have to stand in queues. There are dedicated selfie points. Coolers have been installed at the polling stations to facilitate voters. Additionally, drinking water facility is also available at the booths,” Sarita said.
The pink booth at Navyug School, Vinay Marg, New Delhi bustled with female voters.
The booth was decorated with a few paintings encouraging females to vote.
Garima, 30, who is voting for the third time said that ‘pink booth’ offers safety to women casting their votes.
“You don’t have to stand in queues for hours with males. Here you are in your own comfort zone and can cast your vote anytime. In fact, there is no rush,” she added.
She said her area lacks proper drainage system.
“Whenever it rains, our roads turn into cesspools. We are unable to venture out. I want this problem to be solved,” said Garima who lives Satya Marg, Chanakyapuri.
Eight-five-year-old Sumiti Saklani said she wants good governance.
“There are multiple issues like road, water, sewage and others. This needs to be addressed by the authorities,” she said.
She hopes her elected representatives will address all these issues.
As East Delhi came out to elect its candidate, the spotlight fell on its multiple pink booths scattered across the constituency.
However, one outlier stayed in its midst in the form of the Rajkiya Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya (RSBV) at West Vinod Nagar.
Also read: Lok Sabha Polls 2024: Delhi’s first-time voters turn up to cast their ballot with excitement
The RSBV school in the area was designated as one of the polling booths for the elections on Saturday. The polling station was one of the few which had a pink booth and was designated as a critical area. Thus, the booth also had two returning officers, one to maintain the pink booth stations and the other to maintain the regular stations.
Out of the 10 polling stations at the booth, five of them were designated as pink booth stations.
“However, I can proudly say that booth No. 31 is the only proper pink booth station with all women volunteers,” said returning officer, Hari Kishan Mahavaria.
This booth, decked in all pink, also had multiple selfie points for voters to pose with their index fingers with the indelible ink.
“The voters here can directly go to the selfie point to pose with their proof of trust in our system of democracy. Moreover, we also have a restroom. In the midst of the hustle and bustle of voting process, we have named it the ‘Cool Room’,” he said.
The location was also fitted with CCTV cameras to allow web-streaming to the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer’s office.
“Since it is a critical polling booth, we have to ensure that there is no lapse in the smooth working of our polling stations. On an average, we are taking around 30 seconds per voter,” said Mahavaria.
A polling booth official told Patriot that 233 votes were polled in the first half of the day.
“We have toilets, have put up paintings and decoration, and maintained cleanliness to attract the female voters,” the official stated.
(With inputs from Kushan Niyogi and Idrees Bukhtiyar)
