Voting time increased by 1 hour in Delhi

NEW DELHI: The city will get an extra hour to vote in the April 10 Lok Sabha election. Instead of starting at 8am, polling will begin at 7am. And the Election Commission of India is also considering extending the closing time from 5pm to 6pm. The final notification on poll timings is expected on March 15.

Earlier, the chief electoral officer of Delhi, Vijay Dev, had written to the ECI suggesting additional time as a way to increase voter turnout. During the Delhi assembly polls, voting was allowed past 8pm as people queued up in large numbers at 5pm, the closing time.

The start of voting has been advanced to 7am to attract morning walkers, other early-risers and people who may be reluctant to step out in the April heat. Normally, people stay away from booths on summer afternoons. Going by the December turnout, if voters queue up at booths at closing time, voting will have to continue all night, as whoever enters a polling station by closing time has to be allowed to vote. Extending the timing to 6pm could help prevent the last-minute chaos.