Noida: First-Time voters share their experience of election day

The highly anticipated Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections took place yesterday that is February 10, 2022, and the residents of Noida took part in the elections with zeal. This time, over 1.65 million voters in three assembly seats — Noida, Dadri and Jewar in Gautam Budh Nagar district voted on Thursday. The administration made arrangements at 1,840 polling booths to ensure large turnouts.

However, the most excited of the lot were the first time voters from Noida. We talked to some of them to understand how they felt about the experience.

Sejal Baveja (20) says,

“My first voting experience was amazing. I turned 18 in 2020 and was eagerly waiting for the time when I get to cast my vote. Though I was not doing good health-wise from the past few days, I just had to cast my vote. I was even admitted to the hospital but luckily got discharged on the voting day itself. I went to cast my vote directly from the hospital.”

While talking about the experience of being at a voting booth, she says, “When I reached there, I saw security personnel and a long queue of people waiting for their number. I was happy to see that several people and even senior citizens come out of their homes to vote, even in the times of Covid. In my childhood, I used to see my parents and grandparents going to give their vote and I also used to accompany them. But this time, I went to the voting booth as a responsible citizen to cast my vote, it got me feeling really good that I got a chance to choose my representative.”

While some were very excited and eagerly waiting for the voting day, some voters took this as a more serious responsibility. Ojasvi Singh, a first-time voter says,

“It is our responsibility to vote and inspire others to vote. This is important so that a strong and fair government can be formed in Uttar Pradesh, which can work vigorously on issues like crime, women empowerment and women safety. I'm a first-year student and I am pursuing a Bachelor of Pharmacy. Yesterday, I voted for the first time, everything was systematically arranged and there was a large police force present for security purposes.”

She further says, “The people present there guided me through the procedure as it was my first time voting. The wheelchair was available for the senior citizens and proper Covid measures like social distancing were followed. During voting, it was found that mobile phones and electronic gadgets are not allowed at the polling station. It was a memorable moment for me, my first vote.”

Kashika, 18, says, "As we have entered adulthood, we can perceive things better about society as a whole and the functioning of our government. I was eagerly looking forward to casting my vote for the first time and bringing a difference for our country’s future.
The voting booth was very organized in terms of following the Covid protocols and informing the first-timers about the entire procedure. At first, I was a bit anxious because it was such a crucial thing and each vote matters. After checking our credentials and marking my finger with ink, the officials there directed me to the voting machine. I cast my vote by pressing the buzzer against the candidate and party for which I had decided to vote. It was a special day for me."

In between all this excitement, Naman Gupta (19), another first-time voter was nervous,

“I was excited but a bit nervous too. It was my first time voting so I was naturally a little worried about the process and how all things will happen. But once I was there at the booth, everything went smoothly. It felt nice that I get to choose who represents me. After casting my vote, I feel responsible and proud to be a part of this democratic process.”

However, it was not only the first time voters who were eager to participate in the elections. Sushila Devi is 104 years old and a resident of Prateek Laurel, Sector-120, Noida, cast her vote at Millennium School Sector 119 polling booth. Her grandson, Sameer Tripathi took his grandmother to the polling booth.

DK Sharma, a resident of Green Arch Society, cast his vote right after the operation of his left eye.