The Election Commission (EC) on Saturday decided to take a leaf out of the way the five States of MP, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Mizoram and Telangana used technology to conduct the recent Assembly polls, and emulate it to hold the coming Lok Sabha elections.
These five States demonstrated how technology can be leveraged to enhance voter experience and also provide crucial data in an instant to the election commission officers and made detailed presentations on the takeaways and learning from the previous Assembly polls.
The EC also reviewed the status of vulnerability mapping, security planning, availability of police forces and their requirement during Lok the Sabha elections.
During the review meeting, the EC directed all States and Union Territories to activate the voter helpline centre 1950 so that the grievances of the voters are promptly redressed and it should be ‘first point of care’ for the voters.
According to EC, Chhattisgarh had developed an app to track their polling personnel which streamlined the process while MP developed a software to ensure queue less voting experience for people with disabilities, pregnant women and women with infants to ensure smooth polling during polls.
Mizoram highlighted its successful conduct of elections despite initial problems. Mizoram experience was on building bridges with the civil society organisations, opening dialogue and also the setting up of polling stations for the Bru community in coordination with the state of Tripura was a notable achievement.
Both Rajasthan and Telangana cited several instances of innovative Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) campaigns incorporating local cultural practices which led to a good turn out in these States.
During the conference, the EC to assess the preparedness for the coming Lok Sabha polls, Chief Election commissioner Sunil Arora stressed that States and UTs must assess their electronic voting machine/ Voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) requirements and also ensure adherence to the timelines specified for completion of their First Level checking.
He laid stress upon extensive Hands on experience of the EVM and VVPAT among the voters as well as during the training of polling officials as it helps to minimize the glitches and also boosts confidence among the stakeholders.
“The commission desires from the CEOs that elections are made totally voter-friendly and accessible for persons with disabilities, senior citizens,” the EC said.
EC also reviewed the status of facilitation provided to voters provided to voters by both online and offline methods.
During the conference, the chief electoral officials (CEOs) of all states and UTs made comprehensive presentations of their poll preparedness on all important parameters. The CEOs also informed the commission that all States and UTs are ready for polls.
