Mumbai's Elderly Lead by Example, Cast Votes Despite Challenges
Mumbai witnessed an inspiring display of democratic commitment as senior citizens across the city refused to let age or health issues keep them from voting. These elders treated their ballot not merely as a right but as an essential responsibility they could not ignore.
Centenarian Sets the Tone
One hundred-year-old Manganlal H Doshi from south Mumbai made his position clear. He would accept no excuses for failing to vote. Doshi participated enthusiastically himself and issued a strong call to younger generations to do their part as well.
Prominent Voices Echo the Sentiment
Noted poet and filmmaker Gulzar, aged ninety-one, voiced a straightforward message. He stated that voting constitutes a duty to the nation. According to Gulzar, those who skip the polls forfeit their right to complain later about civic failures.
Determination Overcomes Physical Hurdles
Many seniors demonstrated remarkable resolve to reach their polling stations. In Mulund, ninety-nine-year-old Rukmini Surve insisted her daughter-in-law take her to vote. Her neighbor, eighty-eight-year-old Gajanan Parab, faced greater obstacles.
Parab, who is bedridden and frail, argued with his family for hours. He was determined to cast his ballot. His grandson finally took up the challenge, visiting multiple pharmacies to rent a wheelchair. Once secured, Parab's sixty-year-old son and two grandchildren helped him navigate a narrow building passage and a small maidan to reach the booth.
Evelyn D'Souza, a seventy-four-year-old former psychology teacher from Bandra who uses a wheelchair, also made it to vote. So did Sudha Shah, seventy-four, who went alone to a Sion booth. Shah voted despite her blood glucose level having dropped dangerously low the previous evening. She declared voting a responsibility she does not shy away from.
Habits and Preparation
For some, voting is a long-standing habit. Pauroochisti Jalnawalla, seventy-two, interrupted her rehearsal at NCPA with conductor Zubin Mehta's crew to vote. She stated she always votes when in Mumbai, a practice maintained for years.
Others took time to make informed choices. Ninety-four-year-old Satyabhama Chavan in Thane spent considerable time researching candidates with her grandchildren's help, despite her age and health concerns.
Volunteer Support Makes a Difference
In Bandra and Borivli, volunteers from the Bombay Catholic Sabha provided crucial assistance. These parish-level coordinators helped seniors who could not reach booths on their own.
Their support included:
- Locating the correct polling booth
- Providing car and auto transport from home to booth and back
- Helping find names on voter lists
- Navigating the general chaos at some centers
Volunteer Sabita Burges coordinated and assisted booth visits for fifteen seniors, remaining on duty for over eight hours. Christine Fernandes, eighty-five, whom Burges wheeled from her Bandra home, commended the initiative. Her wheelchair would not fit in the requisitioned car, but she described the experience as a smooth ride.
Accessibility Gaps Cause Strain
Not all elderly voters found the process smooth. Wheelchairs were unavailable at MG School in Bandra and Universal School in Thane's Bramhand area.
Voter Shadab Shaikh reported that at the Bandra school, one wheelchair was arranged only hours later. Until then, voters had to be carried to the booth. The husband of Beena Podel, who walked a long distance to the Thane school booth, said the lack of support facilities like a helpdesk increased anxiety for seniors.
A seventy-six-year-old voter at Shailendra Nagar School in Dahisar used a walker after learning only one wheelchair was functional. He hobbled along with his son's support, noting that while two wheelchairs existed, one was not working.
These stories from Mumbai highlight a powerful civic spirit among the elderly. They also underscore the need for better accessibility to ensure every voter can participate without undue hardship.
