Voters' Day turns a disaster

Programme set to start at 11 am but begins at 12.30 pm; empty chairs greet dignitaries

The programme organised at the Government Junior College was supposed to start at 11 am. However, the programme didn’t begin till 12.30 pm in the afternoon.

Though most of the officials were present, Deputy Commissioner N Manjula had not arrived at the venue, said teachers who added that the programme could have been started but it was delayed inordinately.

One of the worst suffers of this delay were the students who had to skip their classes waiting for the programme to start.

The delay also resulted in students scuttling their last minute preparation for a examination supposed to be held in the afternoon.

The students had been directed to attend the programme by college authorities.

Examination

The sources in the education department said that the students of Government Junior College had preparatory exam on Tuesday morning.

However, to help students take part in the programme and relieve them of exam pressure, it was postponed to Tuesday afternoon, the sources added.

The students were made to sit at the venue for more than a hour, hoping to start the programme. But the non-arrival of Deputy Commissioner and delay in starting the programme forced the students to walk out of the venue in groups, a teacher said.

Programme begins late

The programme started but an hour-and-a-half late and empty chairs greeted the dignitaries. Barring guests and organisers none of the students or public were present at the location. The organisers immediately brought in some of the students who were in the college campus as soon as they learnt the news of Deputy Commissioner’s arrival.

Create awareness

The organisers also ensured that the students stayed till the end of the programme.
Deputy Commissioner N Manjula who inaugurated the programme said that everybody should know about the existence and importance of election photo identity card (EPIC). Students should play an important role in spreading this awareness among the people, she added.

Department of Public Instruction Deputy Director C U Chandrashekar, Assistant Commissioner P Vasant Kumar, Education expert Prof Kodirangappa, Government Junior College Principal Natarajan and others were present on the occasion.