There are 2.49 lakh voters aged above 100 in India, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on Wednesday.Besides, 1.8 crore voters are over 80 years of age, Kumar said after flagging off a bicycle rally in Maharashtra’s Pune city on Wednesday to create an awareness about voter registration as part of the national-level launch of a special summary revision of the voters’ list.
The Election Commission of India’s initiative is aimed at increasing the electoral rolls in urban areas.Explaining the robustness and beauty of the Indian electoral rolls, Kumar said the country had voters from the highest peaks of Himalayas, from the 6,000-km coastline in south, deserts in the west and regions from the east.
“You will be happy to know that we have close to 2.49 lakh voters in our rolls who are (aged) 100-plus and what a relief and ecstasy it gives when you interact with them and find that they have been voting all through their lives,” he said.Besides, there are 1.8 crore voters who are above 80, he told reporters after the rally.The CEC said India’s first voter Shyam Saran Negi, who recently died, was 106 and voted through postal ballot just three days before his death. “That is the spirit,” he added.Kumar said the summary revision takes place every year, but this year they are doing a focused activity and starting it all over the country from Pune with a specific purpose to increase the participation of citizens from urban areas.”What does it mean? Everywhere in the country and the farthest possible states, be it hills, coastal lines, everywhere, inaccessible terrains, deserts, everywhere every single citizen gets enlisted as a voter and strengthens the democracy by not only getting registered but also casting his/her vote,” the CEC said.
