Already recognised with the ‘Best CEO for Accessible Elections’ Award for elaborate arrangements to facilitate the old, pregnant, infirm and specially-abled voters during 2019 Lok Sabha elections, 1998-batch Punjab cadre IAS officer Dr Sirra Karuna Raju has set the ball rolling for Punjab assembly polls scheduled to be held early next year. Claiming to be “fully under control” and preparing “as per schedule”, Punjab Chief Electoral Officer Dr Raju is gearing up for elections while assuring “no voter to be left behind” — be it the first-timers, aged, PWDs, or transgenders. The 51-year-old bureaucrat, hailing from West Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh, is known for his hard work and ability to take tough decisions, besides being always open to new ideas. With elections still about two months away, Dr Raju shares with The Pioneer all the behind-the-scenes preparations going on even before the model code of conduct comes into force. Excerpts:
Elections are just about two months away, how well Punjab is prepared for that?
We have completed preparations in five-six spheres. Right now, special summary revision 2021-22 is going on. In August and September, we made pre-preparations which included house-to-house verification by Block Level Officers (BLOs), BLOs’ training, and the rationalisation of polling booths...These three things we have done in the months of August and September. Besides, a lot of other things are also going on simultaneously. So, we are more or less gearing up in a smooth fashion...preparations are in full swing.
What do you mean by rationalisation of polling booths?
Because of COVID, the number of polling booths has been increased as the voters per booth have been reduced from 1400 to 1200. The number of polling booths now stands at 24,689 against the previous figure of 22,211. A total of 1,478 booths have been increased due to COVID-related issues as 2022 polls will be held as per COVID protocols. All these have been approved by the Election Commission of India till now. Urban areas would have a total of 7727 polling stations, while rural areas would have 16,962. But, this number may slightly rise once the special summary revision is done by January 5, 2022. Some more voters could be added to the electoral roll as three months are still there, and there could be slight increase in polling stations.
You mentioned special summary revision may result in slight rise in polling booth numbers. Please elaborate.
‘For shaping the democracy, each vote is important’, that’s the essence of special summary revision. No one should be left out. As of now, the process of Special Summary Revision is going on. The draft roll has been published on November 1, 2021. So far, what all we have in the rolls is the additions after the last elections, as well as the last year’s updation. In 2019, we conducted the elections, and after that there are two more years before 2022 elections. The electoral rolls are published every year in January, as continuous revision of voters is an ongoing process like addition of new votes, deletion of votes, any modifications, etc. So the final rolls, or the voter list, for the 2022 assembly elections will be published on January 5, 2022. Besides, we have given the copies of draft rolls to all 22 recognised political parties. Now, if they have any objection or complaints, they can raise that by December 30, after which, the concerned Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs), who are the Election Registration Officers (EROs), would consider that and pass orders. Then BLOs would be asked to verify claims and objections regarding fresh voters, shifting from one constituency to another, deletion or addition of votes, any mistake or typographical error...all these claims and objections would be resolved by the EROs, after they get field reports from BLOs...and this process is going on.
What efforts your Office is making to ensure that all eligible voters are included in the voters’ list?
To ensure that all the voters come into the electoral roll, we have planned two special camps of BLOs — one was on November 6 and 7, which received tremendous response; and the second one is on November 20-21 on Saturday and Sunday. During these camps, the BLOs sit in their respective polling booths, and all the people, who want any correction, want to make new votes, transgenders, NRIs, women voters whose vote has been shifted after their wedding — so all these things would be taken into consideration if somebody goes to these special BLO camps. In the first camp, a total of 2,13,000 applications were received, and we are expecting the good response in the second one, though the number could be slightly less as this is the second camp. And after that, all the applications thus received will be digitised and disposed online. The electoral cards are made, and delivered to the voters.
For conducting elections, the primary requirement is that of trained polling staff. Are we prepared?
Yes, simultaneous to revision of electoral rolls, we see the polling personnel who are going to be deployed. We need Block Level Officers (BLOs) to manage polling booths, then Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), who will be assisted by two Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs). Currently, all these are being trained in managing elections, including nomination process, handling EVMs, observance of model code of conduct, expenditure observance, dispatching poll parties, collection of polling material, collection of EVMs after voting, etc...they are being trained in all these modules. One round of training is over and the second round of training is going on in Patiala, Jalandhar, and Bathinda. All the EROs and AEROs are trained. For BLOs also, we have conducted two rounds of training. One more thing that’s important is that all the Deputy Commissioners are in the process of making District Election Management Plans. They are ready with the drafts of the district plans, and we will collate all those things, and make the State Election Management Plan, in the coming 10-15 days.
Can the Election Commission monitor transfers even before the model code of conduct is imposed?
Yes. As the special summary revision is going on, there is a ban on transfers of persons who are involved in this process. In case the government has to make some transfers, they have to send the proposal to the Election Commission. It is up to the Election Commission to accept or reject. As per the ECI guidelines, its prior approval is mandatory in case of any need for transfer of any officer engaged in the revision of electoral rolls during an election year due to any extraordinary reasons.
Ensuring law and order in a state like Punjab is a challenge. Do you agree?
We already have three rounds of video conferencing with Deputy Commissioners, SSPs (Senior Superintendents of Police), and Commissioners of Police. We have already sensitised them to keep a check on law and order situation and start watching all the activities...Slowly, slowly, we will tighten the grip and get ready for the election. Besides, we are watching all the developments...We will take a call and request for the forces required for the conduct of smooth polls. Last time, we got 525 companies of paramilitary forces in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. This time also we will request for it as per the requirement, as per the assessment...we will take into consideration all developments.
Concerned over low registration of first-time voters, you had a meeting with representatives of various education institutions. How are you ensuring to tap them?
We have a flagship programme — Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP). Under this, we target each and every booth wherein we approach the Education Department. Whoever is Class XII pass, we take that list and see whether that student is on the electoral roll or not. Similarly, we approach all colleges and get the admission list, and then see whether the admitted students are on the electoral roll or not. Apart from that, we approach IELTS centre, and other institutions where students congregate, we approach those institutions. Then because many times, they may not all be in educational institutions, so we conduct NSS camps, and involve a lot of NSS students to find out if any one eligible is not registered as a voter. Then we also give a lot of advertisements on TV, electronic media, print and also social media. So, our SVEEP programme is to see that all the un-enrolled voters are brought into the electoral rolls, particularly focussing on the young voters.
Other than the young voters, what is your focus area?
This time, we are focussing on the transgender in a big way. The slogan we have come up with is “mahila purush ya transgender, loktantra mein sab baraabar (whether it’s female, male or transgender, everyone is equal in democracy). Earlier our slogan stopped at just female and male, but I thought that this section is very important. Currently, there are just 670 voters who have registered under the “others” category, which is less. We are making efforts to reach out to them.
Punjab’s NRI voters hold great significance. How is your office planning to woo them to come here and exercise their franchise?
NRI voters are those who have shifted off shores for particular purposes but still have Indian passports. We are actively trying to reach out to them. And if they come, we will provide them good voting facilities, we would welcome them, as we feel proud of them. We are reaching out to the villagers, and we are requesting their families to inform them to come during electioneering and to participate in elections. We will facilitate them, and in fact also felicitate them. We should celebrate their homecoming as they would come all the way from such a long distance.
Any plans to use technological advancements to conduct elections?
Yes, we are taking several IT initiatives as in the current pandemic situation, technology plays a pivotal role and the role of mobile applications increases manifold. All officials have been directed to popularize the usage of mobile application to the maximum extent possible. We have Garuda app for the BLOs, then we have Voter Helpline App for all the eligible electorates, and another one is PWD app for the people with disabilities. Garuda app is for the BLOs which helps in digital mapping of all polling stations, and reduces BLOs workload.
The app would provide all details regarding polling stations’ latitude and longitude, have pictures, besides giving details of assured minimum facilities like washrooms, wheelchair, drinking water, electricity, sheds, chairs, ramps for differently-abled in polling booths which can be checked online. So, all our 24,689 BLOs have downloaded and using this app. All our details have been updated on the net. The Voter Helpline App gives the user option to register as fresh voter, or submit a complaint. There is no need to go to any BLO...It has features like forms for voter registration and modification, downloading of digital photo voter slips, filing complaints, finding details about the contesting candidates and most importantly to see the real-time results of the elections. You don’t need to go anywhere. We request all the people to download this app. Besides, the PwD App enables the Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) to request for new registration, change in address, change in particulars and mark themselves as PwD through the use of mobile application by simply entering their contact details, and the booth level officer is assigned to provide doorstep facility. PwDs can also request for a wheelchair during polling.
Any new initiatives to facilitate the voters this time?
For the first time, the Commission is providing postal ballot facility to the PWDs who have a disability of more than 40 percent, and the 80-plus voters. The PWDs have to provide a certificate, and 80-plus, who are unwilling to come to the polling station, can contact us, we can provide them with a postal ballot.
