Vasai Virar civic polls: Voters to get discounts on hotels, transport on polling day

Palghar: In a bid to encourage voter turnout in the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVMC) polls on January 15, authorities plan to offer special discounts on hotel bills, autorickshaw fares and bus tickets to those who vote, officials said on Thursday.

VVMC Commissioner and Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Suryavanshi held a meeting on Wednesday with representatives of the local hotels association, rickshaw union and the civic transport service.

Describing elections as a "festival of democracy," the commissioner appealed to representatives of various associations to support the democratic process by offering incentives to voters on polling day in Maharashtra's Vasai-Virar civic areas.

In response, the local hotels association announced that it would provide a 15 per cent discount on hotel bills to those who cast their vote, a civic release said.

The city's autorickshaw association declared that voters would be given a 50 per cent discount on transportation fares on the polling day.

The municipal transport department also announced special concessions on bus fares for voters, as per the release.

Representatives of the local hairdressing salon association also said they would offer special discounts on services to voters on the polling day, it added.