There has been a relocation of 17 polling booths in the district of Palamu. The relocation covers its 5 assembly constituencies.
The district election officer cum deputy commissioner Palamu K N Jha has confirmed the relocation. The relocation of booths has been done in the wake of the lurking threat from the extremism, said sources.
The locale of the booths, surrounding topography and to and fro journey of the security forces and the polling parties of the 17 booths now relocated were fraught with extreme danger. The additional superintendent of police ( Operation) Kanhaiyya Singh said among the relocated booths are Titlangi, Bishunpura and Tunnu besides Goindee booth which was relocated also in this last lok sabha election. A polling booth is set up at 2 Kms of maximum distance but in case of relocation this distance gets two-fold, three-fold and in some cases four-fold high. K N Jha conceded that distance of a relocated booth does get longer but for safety and security such a distance is coverable and a voter should bear this inconvenience.
Sources said the relocation of Goindee booth took much of the time of the administration here. Relocation of booth is done no arbitrarily. The contestants or their representatives are taken into confidence for this and on Goindee booth relocation there continued discussion longer than other relocations for the reason that in this lok sabha election voters boycotted voting at the relocated booth of Goindee in protest against the relocation.
K N Jha setting the record straight said voters did turn up at the relocated booth for Goindee but few who came to the relocated booth prevailed upon the other voters not to cast any vote and so there was no polling then in the last lok sabha election. Sources said in relocated booths the percentage of voting gets down terribly as lactating mothers, pregnant women voters elderly voters , handicapped ones just find it too difficult to traverse a good distance to reach the relocated booth site.
Mahoor is one such booth where polling is just not possible for reasons of extreme threat from the Maoists. The Mahoor booth stands relocated like that of Metar booth. Past history of pre poll, poll day and post poll violence also become a major factor behind the relocation of the booths.