The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Good voter turnout in southern suburbs

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Oct 17, 2006
ePaper

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Good voter turnout in southern suburbs

K. Manikandan

More than 80 p.c. polling in Sholinganallur town panchayat

GUARDING THE BALLOTS: Armed personnel stand guard outside St. Mary's Matriculation School at Irumbuliyur near Tambaram, one of the counting centres for the local body elections. — PHOTO: A. MURALITHARAN

TAMBARAM : There was an encouraging voter turnout during local body elections in the southern suburbs of Chennai. While 61 per cent voters turned out in panchayats, 69.7 per cent voters exercised their franchise in the 11 town panchayats in Tambaram area and 63 per cent in the six municipalities in this region.

In the village panchayats, people had to cast at least four votes — for ward member, village panchayat president, panchayat union ward member and district panchayat ward member. Elections were not held in ward No.4 of Injambakkam panchayat for the post of ward members off the East Coast Road as there were no nominations.

Among the town panchayats in this region, the lowest voter turnout was 60.6 per cent recorded in Perungudi and 62.24 per cent in Chitlapakkam. Sholinganallur recorded the highest voter turnout among the town panchayats with 82.29 per cent, followed by Meenambakkam at 79.54 per cent. And among the six municipalities in the southern suburbs of Chennai, Anakaputhur recorded the maximum poll percentage at 73.95 per cent. Upgraded as a municipality from a town panchayat, there are 29,831 voters and 22,060 of them cast their votes on Sunday. The polling percentage in the rest of the municipalities is Alandur: 57.25; Pallavaram: 63.6; Pammal: 64.69; Ullagaram-Puzhuthivakkam: 54.71 and Tambaram: 64.77.

Attention has now shifted to the different counting centres here. St. Mary's Matriculation Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Irumbuliyur in East Tambaram, MIT, Chromepet and A.J.S. Nidhi Higher Secondary School, would be counting centres for Tambaram, Pallavaram and Alandur municipalities respectively, officials said.

The votes of Pammal and Anakaputhur municipalities, besides Meenambakkam, Peerkankaranai, Tiruneermalai, Perungulathur and Nandambakkam town panchayats would be counted at A. M. Jain College, and those of Ullagaram Puzhuthivakkam in SIVET College, Gowrivakkam. D. B. Jain College, Thoraipakkam, and Quaid-e-Milleth College, Medavakkam, would also be counting centres for the other rural local bodies, officials said.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu