Doda Administration discusses delimitation, ward creation in Municipal Councils

DODA, JANUARY 2: Deputy Commissioner Doda Harvinder Singh presided over a detailed meeting focusing on the potential delimitation of municipal areas into additional wards. Held in the DC’s office chamber, the meeting centered on a comprehensive discussion about various challenges, including population slabs, voter numbers, and other criteria that might influence the creation of new wards in order to conduct municipal elections.

Key insights emerged during the deliberations. It was noted that currently, Doda municipal limits comprise 17 wards, Bhaderwah has 13, and Thathri consists of 7. The criteria for creating new wards were clarified: municipal limits with fewer than 20,000 voters do not require additional wards. Conversely, areas with a voter count exceeding this threshold may consider the creation of new wards. Additionally, the ADDC Doda pointed out that in cases where the population exceeds 50,000 but the number of voters is below 20,000, there’s no necessity for additional wards or delimitation.

A significant point raised by DC Singh was the option of redistributing excess voters from one ward to another to maintain a balanced voter ratio across existing wards. After thorough analysis, it was concluded that, given the current voter ratio scenarios, there is no immediate need for further wards or delimitation of municipal areas into additional wards. The meeting was well-attended, including the ADDC Doda, CPO Doda,  Deputy election officer Doda Tehsildar Doda, Executive Officers of Doda, Bhaderwah, Thathri, Election Naib Tehsildar, and other concerned officials.