ECI Conducts doorstep voting for elderly and infirm in Hooghly
The Statesman | 19 April 2026
Ahead of the second phase of polling, the Election Commission of India has begun door-to-door voting for elderly and physically infirm voters, aged above 80.
On Friday, Election Commission of India officials visited households across the district to collect votes from those unable to travel to polling stations. The Commission had earlier identified and registered voters who are physically unfit, aged above 80, or otherwise unable to cast their votes in person.
In the Balagarh block of Hooghly district, 510 such voters were identified and are casting their votes from home. Similar arrangements were made in the Singur Assembly constituency, where elderly voters exercised their franchise at home in Mallikpur village under Gram Panchayat 2. Central force personnel and Election Commission officials were present, and the entire process was videographed by the Commission’s cameraman.
Polling officials also conducted home voting in the Balagarh block, where voters marked their ballots and deposited them in sealed ballot boxes.
In College Para under Balagarh Zirat Gram Panchayat, 104-year-old Mahendra Halder and specially-abled voter Bikash Sarkar cast their votes from home. Mahendra Halder’s son, Biswajit Halder, said his father is unwell, unable to walk or hear. The family expressed satisfaction with the arrangements made by the ECI.
Bikash Sarkar said he lost his eyesight in an accident and is unable to walk, adding that he too was able to vote from home.
According to Election Commission sources, a 105-year-old man also cast his vote in Hashimpur.
However, a 91-year-old woman in Uttarpara, who had applied for home voting, was unable to avail of the facility. Her son, Arunabh Ganguly, stated that although the provision applies to voters above 85 years of age, her vote was not collected from her residence.