The Election Commission on Tuesday decided to set up a committee to improve the participation of migrant voters and reach out to electors in urban as well as remote areas.
The commission, chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and including Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey, discussed Mr. Kumar’s recent trek to a remote polling station in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district. Recognising the efforts of polling officials who travel up to three days in advance to the 440 remote polling stations in the country, the EC decided to double the remuneration for such polling parties. The EC said, in a statement, that the Chief Electoral Officers of States and Union Territories would identify such polling stations for enhanced remuneration. The EC also decided to work on new water and shock-proof backpacks or cases to carry EVMs and VVPATs in difficult terrains.
The EC decided to form a committee to look into the issues faced by migrant workers when it comes to exercising their franchise.
“Voters migrate from the place of their registration to cities and other places for education, employment and other purposes. It becomes difficult for them to return to their registered polling stations to cast their vote. The commission felt that time has come to explore possibilities of remote voting, maybe on a pilot basis,” the EC said.
The EC decided to boost turnout in urban areas through targeted awareness campaigns. “In order to address voting apathy in urban areas, the commission decided to undertake focused awareness activities”. The EC said Central and State departments and PSUs as well as corporate entities with over 500 employees would appoint a nodal officer to “ascertain leave availing but non-voting employees”. Special voter education and electoral participation awareness programmes would be held for “such non-voting members of these organisations”.
