How Election Commission will be using latest technology and mobile apps to hold polls

Know about the apps that will be used by the EC for the Lok Sabha elections.

The Election Commission will be bringing the latest technologies to use for further improvement of the overall efficiency of various Lok Sabha election activities. For effective conduct of elections, the ECI has integrated use of smart technology by making the optimum use of mobiles, smartphones, tablets, etc.

Here are some of the apps that will be used by the EC for the General Elections 2019:

1. cVIGIL app: For citizens, candidate and political parties, the EC has come up with cVIGIL app. An Android-based mobile App, cVIGIL is user-friendly and easy to operate. All that one has to do is to simply click a picture or to take a video and briefly describe the activity before uploading it. People can record and report videos of any violation of Model Code of Conduct, any incident of intimidation through their phone and promptly flag it to the election authorities. Through this, citizens won't need to go to the office of the returning officer. If the complainant desires to remain anonymous, they also have the option to do so. 

cVIGIL provides time 36 stamped evidentiary proof of the Model Code of Conduct/Expenditure Violation, having live photo/video with auto location data. The District Control Room allocates cVIGIL cases to the Flying Squads etc. through GIS-based platform. Flying Squads will investigate the matter and the Returning Officer will take the decision. The status of cVIGIL is shared with the cVIGIL complainant within 100 minutes.

2. Voter Helpline Mobile app: The EC will also be having a Voter Helpline Mobile app enabling citizens to find names in electoral roll, submit online forms, check status of application, filing complaints and receiving replies. All forms, results, candidate affidavit, press notes, Voter awareness will be available on the mobile app. 

3. PwD App: Through this app citizens in the category of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) can request for new registration, change in address, change in particulars and mark themselves as PwD through the use of the mobile application. By simply entering their contact details, the Booth Level Officer is assigned to provide doorstep facility. PwDs can also request for a wheelchair during polling. 

4. Suvidha Candidate App: The Android-based mobile app will enable candidates to track the status of thier nomination and status of their permission requests. 

5. Samadhan: The Election Commission has designed a single integrated web portal for registering and resolving citizen Information, Suggestion, Feedback and Complaints (IFSC). The portal is available for election as well as non-election period. It can also be used to lodge a grievance using ‘Voter Helpline’ Mobile App. All the EROs, DEO, CEO and ECI Officials are connected into the Samadhan Portal and the complaint lodged in the Samadhan directly connects to concerned official. There is an escalation matrix configured into the system and if within a time frame the matter is not addressed by ERO, it gets escalated to the next levels.

6. Voter Helpline Contact Centre: People can now directly call on a universal toll-free helpline number of Election Commission of India i.e. 1950 to connect directly to District Contact Centre. All Districts and CEO Office across all States and Union Territories have established Contact Centre to provide Information and register Feedback, Suggestions and Complaints. Any user can call 1950 and obtain information about his Voter details in the electoral roll, check for the status of his enrollment application and also lodge grievance.

For election officials:

1. Observer App: Observer mobile app aids Observers in the real-time to get all information about the Parliamentary / Assembly Constituency and send observation reports to ECI instantly and securely. All cVIGIL cases reported in their jurisdiction are available to General Observers, Expenditure and Police Observers and they can supervise and give their inputs too from the place of citing of cVIGIL incidence.

2. Suvidha: The application provides a robust single interface for candidates and political parties to apply and get permission for all campaign related activities in time bound manner and for ROs, DEOs, and CEOs for effective management and monitoring of Candidate Nomination, Candidate Affidavit filing, candidate/ political parties permissions management, Counting, and results display. New Suvidha also has complete decision support system for Returning Officers which includes, Electoral Roll, Observers deployment plan, Polling Station details, Voter Slip distribution statistics and an interface to handle all complaints.

3. Sugam: The Election Commission of India has been using this application for Vehicle Management with the facility of Issuance of requisition letters for vehicles, Capturing of vehicle details with address, mobile number and bank details of Owner & Driver, Transfer of vehicles from one district to another district etc. It is to be used by CEOs as per requirements.

4. EVM Management System (EMS): One of the important modes to ensure a fair and transparent process in EVM management is the administrative protocol of randomization of the machines before they are deployed in the Polling stations. This whole process is done in the presence of Political Parties’/Candidates representatives. The New EVM Management System will be used for randomization in addition to end to end inventory management.

5. Election Monitoring Dashboard: The online system for reporting the poll turnout in the PCs and ACs and incidents at the polling booth level. This will bring a single source of truth across the full managerial network across the Election Commission of India. The data is entered by the Returning Officer

6. One-way Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot for Service Voters: All registered Service Voters will be delivered e-postal ballot of their respective constituency through electronically transmitted postal ballot (ETPBS), which will be printed and after casting the vote will be sent back to Returning Officer by post.