Pune: Anticipating a heavy turnout during the final hour of polling, election authorities have introduced a token-based system to manage crowds and ensure that no eligible voter is denied the right to vote.Under election rules, voters who enter polling station premises before the official closing time of 5.30pm are entitled to cast their vote, even if polling continues beyond that hour. To regulate the expected last-minute rush, polling officials will issue numbered tokens to all voters present within the premises at or before 5.30pm.The last voter in the queue at 5.30pm will be issued Token No. 1, after which entry to the polling station will be closed. Tokens will then be distributed in reverse order to voters ahead in the queue, clearly establishing the cut-off point and preventing any additional entry. Polling stations will maintain records of all tokens issued.“Once the last voter present inside the polling premises at 5.30pm is given Token No. 1, entry will stop. All token holders will be allowed to vote, even if polling extends beyond the scheduled closing time,” a senior election official said.Officials said the token system, along with a reduced voter load and advance guidance, is aimed at ensuring a smooth polling process while safeguarding the voting rights of all eligible citizens.Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) commissioner Naval Kishore Ram told TOI that all voters who reach polling stations on or before 5.30pm will be allowed to vote without difficulty. “We urge voters to come out and vote in the elections,” he said, adding that all facilities are being provided at the polling stations.Similar measures were implemented during the Lok Sabha and assembly elections, when long queues in the final hour at many polling stations forced officials to extend polling to accommodate voters already present. Election authorities had earlier emphasised the need for transparency in token distribution during extended polling hours.Officials expect crowd management to be easier this time, as the number of voters per polling station has been reduced. While earlier elections had more than 1,000 voters per booth, polling stations in the municipal elections will now cater to approximately 800–900 voters each.Polling staff have also been instructed to guide voters in advance due to the multi-member ward system. Voters are required to select four candidates on the EVM, and officials will brief them to press the button four times and wait for the confirmation beep before leaving the booth. With these measures, the average voting time per voter is expected to be around 35–40 seconds.Elections are being held for 165 seats in the PMC areas,with 35.51 lakh voters registered across 4,011 polling stations and 1,155 candidates in the fray.In Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), 128 seats are being contested by 692 candidates, with 17.27 lakh voters across 2,034 polling stations.
