Micro observers to oversee voting in Saurashtra

PORBANDAR: On December 11, when Saurashtra goes to polls in the first phase of Gujarat Assembly election, a new experiment will unfold in the birthplace of Gandhiji.
  
For the first time in the country, "micro observers", appointed by the Election Commission, will be deployed in Saurashtra and other parts of the state to check bogus andforced voting.
   
"A town synonymous with Gandhiji has ironically beenbracketed with the mining mafia for the last few years. However, on the polling day, the two constituencies, Porbandar and Kutiyana, will tell the world how they respond to the new system," says District Collector M B Parmar.
   
The micro observers will consist of government employees, who will be randomly selected from the district. "They will be allotted a polling booth each. However, they will get to know a particular polling booth only in the early hours of December 11," says Parmar.
   
There are over 3 lakh voters for the two assembly constituencies.
   
"These micro observers will remain inside a booth and see whether genuine voters are able to use their voting rights. They will report to the three general observers already slotted for the district," says Parmar.