Students in Coimbatore turned their voter awareness efforts into a practical tech project, using a robot that says hello, provides sweets, and explains how to fill out a ballot. They are trying for 100% of people to vote, and are tracking how many people are voting throughout the day to emphasize the importance of getting it done.
Pictures from Government Arts College in Coimbatore show the students’ robot greeting people as they arrive to vote on campus and handing out sweets to boost spirits and keep the lines moving.
Student-built robot greets voters in Coimbatore
The students designed the robot to deliver election information in a way that’s friendly and easy to remember. By combining spoken directions with movements and treats, the team wanted to make voting feel easy and good.
Two of these robots were used in the voter awareness campaign, offering basic directions and encouraging people to vote at the polling place.
Student voice: aim for 100% voting
Vimal Vijayan, one of the students, explained, “It’s election day in Tamil Nadu today, and we’re using this robot to encourage everyone to vote! People are responding to it really well.”
He also said the team built the robot’s voice system and remote control. The robot is saying “get in line” and “here’s how to vote”. He also said he is interested in electronics, engineering, and robotics.
How the robot works and what it tells voters
The robot uses voice and radio control to give clear instructions. It tells people to wait in line, follow the steps, and fill in their ballot correctly. It repeats and is very clear, to make people less unsure when they are at the voting booth.
These kinds of efforts demonstrate how new ideas at a local level can actually help people remember their part in a democracy.
The robot focuses on simple, clear prompts:
– Greet voters at the entrance
– Offer sweets as encouragement
– Remind people to stand in queue
– Explain how to cast a vote
Turnout snapshot across Tamil Nadu
By 1 pm, the Election Commission of India said 62.18% of eligible voters in the state had voted. Tiruppur was leading with 62.97%, followed by Namakkal at 62.51% and Erode at 61.97%.
Cities are doing worse than the state average. Chennai had 54.58% of voters cast ballots, Coimbatore had 58.24%, and Madurai had 54.75%. The Nilgiris had the lowest turnout with 50.42%.
Key district figures so far include:
– Tiruppur: 62.97 percent
– Namakkal: 62.51 percent
– Erode: 61.97 percent
– Coimbatore: 58.24 percent
– Chennai: 54.58 percent
– Madurai: 54.75 percent
– Nilgiris: 50.42 percent
Polling timeline and what comes next
Voting will finish at 6 pm today, and the votes will be counted on May 4. We’ll see if more people vote in the late afternoon and evening, which would raise the overall percentage.
Tamil Nadu has more than 57.3 million people who are eligible to vote, including 29.3 million women, 28.0 million men, and 7,728 people who identify as a third gender. There are 1.45 million first-time voters, 68,501 military personnel voting, and 418,541 votes that were sent in by mail have already been received.
In the election for the state legislature, the main competition is between the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (which includes the Congress, DMDK, and VCK) and the National Democratic Alliance led by AIADMK, with the BJP and PMK as its partners.
The robot campaign in Coimbatore shows how technology can help with the practical side of a busy election day. As the evening gets closer, we will find out if these efforts on the ground can reduce the gap in voting numbers between cities and the best-performing areas of the state and get more people to vote.
