Eleven Assembly Constituencies (ACs) of district Jammu are all set for polls with over 12 lakh voters going to exercise their right to franchise on October 1, during the third and final phase of Assembly polls.
The district comprises eleven Assembly Constituencies namely Bishnah (SC), Suchetgarh (SC), RS Pura-Jammu South, Bahu, Jammu East, Nagrota, Jammu West, Jammu North, Marh (SC), Akhnoor (SC) and Chhamb, with a total of 12,00,977 voters; 6,19,066 male, 5,81,887 female and 24 third gender voters.
For smooth and hassle-free facilitation of voters, ECI has established 1,494 polling stations across the district with 609 urban polling stations and 885 rural polling stations.
To foster maximum voter participation and facilitate voters, dedicated polling stations have been established across districts for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), Polling booths managed by women as Pink Polling Stations, Polling Stations manned by youths, Green Polling Stations and Unique Polling Stations.
Among all the eleven Assembly Constituencies of the district, 74-RS Pura-Jammu South AC has the highest number of 1,30,107 registered voters, comprising 67,322 males, 62,782 females and 3 transgender voters.
The constituency also houses 149 polling stations, 98 urban and 51 rural for smooth and hassle-free voting experience for all registered voters.
75-Bahu AC comes next with a voter population of 1,21,131, among which 61,963 are males, 59,159 are females and 9 third gender voters. To facilitate the voters, 139 polling stations have been established in this constituency; 131 urban polling stations and 8 rural polling stations.
72-Bishnah (SC) Assembly Constituency comes next with 1,19,988 registered voters; 63,385 males, 56,602 females and 1 third gender voter. To ensure a smooth electoral process, 139 polling stations have been established across the constituency, of which 18 are urban and 121 are rural polling stations.
Similarly, the 73-Suchetgarh (SC) Assembly Constituency has 1,13,449 voters, among which 59,727 are males, 53,720 are females and 2 transgender voters. A total of 128 rural polling stations have been set up in the constituency for a smooth and hassle-free voting process.
Similarly, 79-Jammu North AC has 1,11,811 voters; 57,213 males, 54,595 females and three-third gender voters. To facilitate the voters of this constituency, 117 polling stations have been set up, including 87 urban and 30 rural polling stations.
76-Jammu East AC has a total of 1,07,213 voters; 54,021 are males, 53,189 are females and 3 third gender voters. In order to ensure a participatory voting process, 153 polling stations have been established in the constituency, including 131 urban and 22 rural stations.
Similarly, 78-Jammu West AC has a 1,06,252 voter population, of which 53,811 are males and 52,441 are females. For a smooth voting process, 118 polling stations have been established, including 112 urban and 6 rural polling stations.
82-Chhamb AC has a 1,06,035 voter population; 54,295 are males and 51,740 are females. 165 polling stations have been set up in the constituency, with 8 in urban areas and 157 in rural areas.
77-Nagrota AC has 96,007 registered voters, with 49,735 males and 46,272 females. The ECI has set up 145 rural polling stations in this constituency.
81-Akhnoor (SC) Assembly Constituency has 95,386 voters, comprising 48,954 males, 46,430 females and 2 third-gender voters. To facilitate voting, 127 polling stations have been established, with 12 in urban areas and 115 in rural areas.
80-Marh (SC) Assembly Constituency, with the lowest voter count, has 93,598 registered voters, including 48,640 males, 44,957 females and 1 third gender voter. The constituency has 114 polling stations, with 12 in urban areas and 102 in rural areas.
Interestingly, the upcoming elections are set to be a coming-of-age moment for 47,963 first-time voters. These young voices are spread across the district, with 82-Chhamb AC leading the pack with 5,647 new voters, while 78-Jammu West AC has the lowest count at 2,801.
Jammu’s senior citizens, who comprise nearly 18 per cent of the total electorate, are poised to play a pivotal role in the upcoming elections.
These 2,15,338 voters, aged 60 and above, bring their wealth of experience to the polling booths. However, it is the centenarians who truly embody the spirit of enduring democracy.
“Jammu boasts 404 voters between 100-109 years old, 29 super-centenarians aged 110-119 and remarkably, six voters who have lived through over 120 years of India’s history,” an official statement said.
“Meanwhile, all arrangements are being put in place for smooth and peaceful polling in the district where voting is taking place on October 1. Currently, a number of voter awareness programs are underway in various parts of the district to generate interest among the electorate regarding the importance of exercising the franchise and to maximize the voter turnout.”