Mangaluru: Reducing waiting time at polling booths, separate queue for senior citizens, and arranging adequate public transport facilities for those staying in other parts of the State to reach the city for the voting day were among the demands made by representatives of multi-storied residential apartments at a meeting here on Wednesday.

At a preliminary meeting called by Dakshina Kannada Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) Committee to make residents in apartments not miss voting, a senior representative of a residential apartment said that elderly persons have a problem in waiting for long at the polling stations and exercise their franchise.

“The waiting time at the polling booth should be curtailed,” he said, and sought a separate queue for elderly people.

Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Kumara, who is district nodal officer for SVEEP, said that this time those aged above 80 and physically challenged persons can opt for postal ballot and exercise their franchise from their houses. At polling stations, he said, the waiting period will be a maximum of 20 minutes and there will be separate queue for the elderly.

To another question, Mr. Kumara said a physically challenged person can avail postal ballot facility if he/she is certified as physically challenged person and possess disability card issued by the government. “Unwell persons, who are on the bed, cannot avail this facility,” he said.

Mohammed Soorinje, a representative of Landmark Green County apartments in Bolar, said in absence of adequate public transport facilities, those staying in Bengaluru and other parts of the country face difficulty in reaching Mangaluru for the the voting day.

He said that there are good number of people in the apartments who are from different parts of the country and they cannot vote.

Mr. Kumara said though there is no problem in reaching Mangaluru from Bengaluru, he will send a proposal to the Election Commission for having more public buses from Bengaluru to reach Mangaluru on May 10.