Lok Sabha Polls: How Did Arunachal Pradesh Bring In More Women Voters?

Lok Sabha Elections 2024 kickstarted on April 19 and several Indian States in Phase 1 showed an encouraging development of women voters thronging the poll booths. In Arunachal Pradesh, the Election Commission gifted sanitary pads in exchange for votes to women. The aim was not only to attract more female voters but also to spread awareness about menstrual health. An initiative called 'Sakhi Booths' set up two all-women polling stations-- the DFO Social Forestry building and the KV Building at NERIST, Times of India reported.

The voter turnout in the State was less than 50%, according to the EC data. About 600 of the 1400-odd registered voters turned up. However, the menstrual awareness campaign by district deputy commissioner IAS Shweta Nagarkoti was appreciated.

Arunachali Women Voters Get Pads

“All female voters who came to vote were given sanitary pads. It was a kind of incentive and gratitude gift for female voters who came to vote on a rainy day,” Hage Sunya, in charge of the initiative at one of the stations, told TOI.

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Keter Bagra, district information and public relations officer at Itanagar Capital Complex said, “Sanitary pads as gifts is a new way to spread awareness about menstrual hygiene here. The EC move took the female voters by surprise. They were very happy." 

Women Voters At Assam LS Elections

In Assam, the number of women voters came out in large numbers and surpassed men in all five constituencies. The total number of women voters in the five constituencies is 43,64,859 compared to 42,82,887 men, while there are 123 from the third gender. 

In Assam, only four women are contesting the Lok Sabha polls out of the total 35 contestants for five seats. The female candidates make up just 11.4% of the candidates. Three of the four candidates are contesting from Kaziranga constituency. 

The number of registered female voters in India has been remarkably shooting up, and the State of Assam is no exception. At the phase 1 polls on April 19, enthusiastic women voters across all five constituencies of the north-eastern State outnumbered men. 

In Kaziranga, there are 10,25,210 women and 10,24,883 male voters. The women candidates contesting from here include Congress' Roselina Tirkey and independent aspirant Diluwara Begum Chowdhury, the richest candidate in the first phase.

In Sonitpur, there are 8,21,012 women and 8,12,755 men. The only woman candidate here is Rinku Roy of Gana Sangram Parishad. Moving to Jorhat, the constituency has 8,78,192 women and 8,48,923 men.

Dibrugarh has 8,49,563 women voters and 8,09,990 males, while Lakhimpur has 7,90,882 women voters and 7,86,335 males. Despite the remarkable number of women voters, the candidacy of women is lacking.

The BJP is contesting in all five seats, the Congress in four and supporting the Assam Jatiya Parishad contestant in one, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in two, and the All India Trinamool Congress and CPI(M) in one seat each.