Despite the announcement of polling dates in Gujarat, work on issuing the Elector’s Photo Identity Card (EPIC) to first-time voters in Ahmedabad is still ongoing and is expected to be completed within the next 8-10 days.
“There are 93,428 first-time voters in Ahmedabad (18-19 age group). The EPIC distribution should be over in 8-10 days. As soon as they are getting printed, we are distributing,” said Dr Dhaval Patel, District Election Officer and Ahmedabad collector, Thursday. Patel was responding to a question from a media person as to why a few first-time voters were yet to receive their EPIC.
The cards are being delivered by post, the official said. “At many places, the distribution is pending and they will be delivered by mid-November,” he added, without mentioning the reason for the delay.
Ahmedabad has 21 assembly constituencies, 16 of which are urban and five of which are rural. Danilimda and Asarva are reserved seats for Scheduled Castes. For over 59.93 lakh voters, the Ahmedabad district alone will have 5,599 polling booths.