Children write letters, motivate parents to vote

Letters in legible handwriting by schoolchildren appealing to parents and guardians to cast their valuable votes, is the most innovative among a string of campaigns launched by Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (Sveep) committee in Udupi district to ensure cent percent voter turnout.

The letter begins with an appeal, ‘Appa, Amma exercise your franchise without fail in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections’, that is sure to tug at the heartstrings of parents. The letter, further, appeals to the parents to turn a blind eye to the gifts like money, alcohol or sarees offered by candidates contesting the elections.

Such postcard letters appealing parents to vote were drafted by the students staying in postmatric, pre-matric hostels and Ashrama schools run by the ITDP, and backward classes and social welfare department. The students wrote letters not only to their parents but also to guardians, relatives, family members and friends above 18 years in order to create awareness on ethical voting.

The students will hand over the letters with the address to the hostel warden, who in turn will post it. Udupi district has 61 hostels with nearly 5,000 students. Such initiative will not only help in creating an awareness on the sanctity of exercising franchise among parents but will also inspire the students into a forgotten practice of writing letters.

“Along with writing letters, postmatric hostel students were also administered a oath on exercising franchise ethically. The working of EVM and VVPATs were also demonstrated in the hostels,” Backward Classes department Officer Sankappa R Lamani said.

Sveep Committee Chairperson and Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Sindhu B Roopesh said, “The art of writing letters has disappeared in this age of instant emails and whatsapp. The bond and warmth reflected in handwritten letters cannot be experienced in emails. When the children write letters to their parents, they will definitely respond and participate in the democratic process by exercising their franchise,” she added.

She said postcard campaign to appeal voters is an effort to increase the polling percentage.