Bastar: Chandrameta is the most remote village of Jagdalpur district where service delivery by the administration remains an uphill task.
Owing to the remoteness of the village, its voters had to go to Chhingur gram panchayat to exercise their franchise during elections. But last year the Election Commission of India gave the villagers a reason to cheer by setting up a polling booth at the local school for the general elections. The villagers voted in large numbers as was evident with the voting percentage. However, the joy was short-lived as no polling booth was set up in the village for the three-tier panchayat elections on Monday.
The villagers, as had been the norm, were asked to go to Chhingur, around 6 to 7 km away to cast their votes. Chandrameta is located in a Naxal-affected area and has below-par road connectivity. Although a vehicle was arranged by the administration to carry the voters from the village to Chhingur, very few turned up. The villagers are left wondering about the decision of not setting up a polling booth in the local school. The young voters of the village said had a booth been set up in the school, then the voting percentage for panchayat polls would have been 100 per cent.
The voting for the first phase of the three-tier Panchayat elections were held on Monday in 53 development blocks across all 33 districts of Chhattisgarh. The voting will be held on February 20 and 23 in the second and third phases respectively and the results will be announced on February 18, 20 and 24.
