People in Uptown vote for basic amenities, employment

Srinagar, Sept 25: The voters in Uptown areas of Srinagar city on Wednesday voted for basic amenities and employment for youth.

As the voting began, the polling booths at Rajbagh, Jawahar Nagar, Chanapora, Natipora, Mehjoor Nagar witnessed huge rush of voters.

Sitting with a group of friends, Mushtaq Ahmad (name changed) said it was necessary for him to cast his vote in this election.

“I cast my vote in the last Lok Sabha elections as well. Besides other things, casting a vote will ensure my safety. Long back a case was registered against me but when I cast my vote I have the authority to say that I believe in the Indian constitution,” Ahmad, a resident of Jawahar Nagar, said.

At Rajbagh polling booth, people from all age groups were seen coming and casting their votes.

“I know, after the counting over votes, the doors of all these leaders will be closed for us. But instead of staying away from polling, I decided to vote and hope for better development,” Nazir Ahmad, an elderly voter said.

He said the market inflation has gone very high besides there are no jobs for educated youth. “Our females have to wait for hours in long queues at ration stores. We have suffered a lot in bureaucratic administration so we are hopeful that the popular elected government will address our problems,” he said.

At Rawalpora polling station of Chanapora constituency, voters were seen coming one by one and casting their votes. “I believe it is foolish to waste our vote. We should vote considering the prevailing circumstances and the problems faced by the people here,” said an elderly voter while leaving from the polling station.

An elderly voter Deedar Singh along with his wife at Mehjoor Nagar said their only purpose was to cast their votes to see a better future for their kids. “We want peace in life and settlement for our youth,” he said.

A group of elderly voters at Mehjoor Nagar said they have come to cast their votes to support their candidate.

“No doubt there are issues of development, unemployment rate is rising but this time we have to ensure that our candidate should win then only we can expect something from him. We are here to ensure that our families and relatives cast their votes,” an elderly voter said.

Meanwhile, the women voters at various polling booths said they voted for basic amenities and also hoped that the elected government would address market inflation, and smart meters. “Given the high market rates, we cannot afford to buy two vegetables at a time given the high rates of essential commodities. We want to get rid of smart meters,” an elderly voter from Lal Chowk said.