Edakkara: Tribals living deep in the forest won’t have to trek long, rugged trails to cast their votes in this assembly election. Special polling booths are being set up within the forest itself to make voting easier and ensure that every eligible voter can participate in the democratic process.

For voters from the tribal settlements of Iruttukuthi, Kumbalappara, Vaniyampuzha and Tharippapotti in Munderi forests, polling booths will be established at the Vaniyampuzha Forest Station. At the same time, voters from Vazhikkadavu, Punchakkolli and Alakkal will be able to cast their votes at the Punchakkolli preschool.

As part of making the arrangements, election officials, along with personnel from the central police force, visited the locations to oversee the setup. The decision to establish special polling booths comes in view of the hardships faced by voters in these remote forest villages, many of whom often skip voting due to the long and difficult journey to polling stations outside the forest.

Special polling booths were first introduced in these forest areas during the 2024 parliamentary elections. They have since been set up for the two subsequent by-elections as well as for the local body elections held recently.

Under the Punchakkolli booth, there are 247 registered voters, including 127 men and 120 women. The Vaniyampuzha booth covers 302 voters, with 153 men and 149 women. BLOs have already delivered voter slips to all eligible voters to ensure maximum participation. Teams comprising officials from the Revenue Department, Forest Department, Police and ITDP visited these setlemenes and conducted awareness campaigns.