Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections | A road to a booth through Karnataka

Reaching a polling station within the Anthiyur Assembly constituency might be a herculean job for election officers. They have to journey 54 km by road in Tamil Nadu and one other 29 km in Karnataka to attain Kuttaiyur within the Bargur panchayat.

Located on the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka border and 83 km away from Anthiyur, the Government Tribal Residential Middle School serves as a polling booth for 489 electors of the village and Velampatti.

The officers have to cowl 54 km from Anthiyur to Kargekandi in Chamrajanagar district of Karnataka and journey 24 km from there to Jallipalayam. Then, they’ve to journey 5 km to attain the border, cross a stream and stroll 750 metres to attain Kuttaiyur. “It takes about three hours to reach the booth from Anthiyur,” says an election official who lately visited Kuttaiyur. After polling, the supplies have to be transported to the counting centre at Gobichettipalayam, which is 47 km away. The official says a mini-lorry can be used for transport, whereas the hand-held transceivers of the Departments of Forest and Police can be used for communication because the village has no cell phone hyperlink.

The village, which has a inhabitants of 450, is situated 27 km away from the Kadambur Hills. It may also be reached through a 5 km forest pathway from Makkampalayam. But boulders and 4 streams alongside the stretch will injury EVMs and VVPATs, says the official.

Commuting has been an arduous job for the villagers, who rely upon a pick-up automobile to attain Makkampalayam after which take Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation buses to attain authorities places of work at Anthiyur. To purchase groceries and go to hospitals, they go to Jallipalayam. Inaccessibility has pressured college students of the village to drop out and change into labourers. Child marriages are additionally rampant.