Long queues, high enthusiasm in hinterlands

Sattari/Pernem: On Saturday, Sanjay Kesarkar made three rounds to his polling booth in Pissurlem, Sattari, hoping the queues would ease. However, the queues were relentless throughout the day. At his third visit, he finally gave up and joined the line, with his turn to cast the vote coming after standing in the queue for 30 long minutes.

From village to village, it was the same story with voters encountering long waits and steady crowds throughout the day.


“I went to the polling booth at 10am, at 11.30am, and at 12.30pm. I finally decided to join the queue. The turnout has been huge at these ZP polls,” said Kesarkar.

By 2pm, at the 22 Shantinagar polling booth in Pissurlem, Sattari, the voter turnout had already touched around 58%,” said BLO Sagar Parsekar.

In Bicholim taluka’s ZP polling booths, there were no big numbers visible at any point, but the steady flow of voters saw polling happening in a phased manner, leading to over 80% voting in most constituencies.

“The use of ballot is possibly slowing down the voting, but voters are waiting patiently. Even those from Sattari working in Panaji or Margao have returned home just to be able to vote,” said Sameer Bagi from Bhironda panchayat in Sattari.

ZP members have limited powers, but most candidates have a strong connect with the grassroots, and that helped increase voting percentages. This was visible in Goa’s interiors as candidates stopped at every booth, checked the rolls, and then made calls to those who were yet to show up.

Unlike the state assembly and panchayat elections, there were no hectic activities on the roads leading to the polling booths. In Pernem taluka, the booth tables and crowds gathering near polling stations were missing in most areas, except a few locations. However, voters did step out on their own, voted for the candidate of their choice, and quietly returned home. Pernem’s ZP constituencies recorded a voter turnout ranging between 76% and 80%.

Santosh Lolienkar, personal assistant to sports minister Ramesh Tawadkar, standing outside a polling booth in Agas, Loliem, said, “Most people have decided whom to vote, so on polling day they don’t need to be reminded.”

The BJP’s presence was clearly visible in the constituencies of Khola and Poinguinim, with the ruling party having its polling agents in almost every booth, some of them dressed in flashy orange.

The elderly were among those making a determined effort to come out and vote. Many senior citizens braved the chilly morning weather and the lack of transport facilities. Pushpawati Naik, 80, from Ponda taluka, turned up at a polling booth that was almost two kilometres away from her residence at Nallakond, Khandepar.

“Earlier, when a villager assured a party thier vote, it was confirmed. Now, voter is wiser. They assure their vote to everyone but silently vote for whom they want. It makes it difficult to gauge the response,” said Vishwanath Naik, a voter from Ponda.

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