Vijayawada: The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) authorities prepared the division-wise voter list, basing on the list prepared for the general elections.
According to general elections list, there are a total of 3,84,441 male voters, 3,93,504 women voters and 124 third gender voters in the VMC limits. The present council of the VMC will be in force till July 2, 2019.
With the Election Commission ordering the municipal authorities to submit the division-wise voter list, the officials submitted it on May 10, the last date set by the EC for submission.
However, this exercise is a setback to the proposal of forming a Greater Corporation. During the last two years, there was talk that the city would be expanded and elevated as a Greater Vijayawada Corporation by merging all the villages on the outskirts of the city and that it would be divide into 100-160 divisions, instead of the current 59 divisions.
The municipal council lost a chance to hold its last meeting as the model code of conduct was in force for the last one month.
The total population of the city is about 12 lakh in 59 divisions. The city is divided into three Assembly constituencies and there are a total of 7,78,069 registered voters in these constituencies. The VMC proposed to set up 554 polling stations, with each having a maximum strength of 1,400 voters.
The VMC authorities identified 5 divisions with more than 20,000 voters. The 2nd division has 24,000 voters, the highest number in the city followed by the 14th division with 23,696 voters, 53rd division with 23,021 voters, 28th division with 21,827 voters and 3rd division with 20,975 voters.
According to the VMC statistics, five divisions have least number of voters and they are 41st division with 7,494 voters, 50th with 7,527, 16th division with 7,901, 48th with 7,919 and 17th with 7,925.
The second-rung leaders of various political parties had already started lobbying for seats to contest as corporators.
Meanwhile, The leaders of political parties who have remained silent for the last one month have now swung into action with the counting day, May 23, a couple of days away. They are waiting to assess the pulse of the voters.
Adding to this, the reservation of the divisions for the minorities is yet to be announced.
One of the former corporators of VMC, Yadala Srinivasa Rao said there is not much action regarding local body polls now. "The results of the general and Assembly polls should be declared and hence, all eyes are focused on that."
However, he said that nothing can be assessed regarding the local body polls, basing on the result of the general elections. “In the local body elections, citizens see the development activities carried out in their areas and then prefer to vote for the candidates who really did something on the ground.”
