A month after the launch of the National Electoral Rolls Purification and Authentication Programme which links Aadhaar with voters’ Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC), it is yet to pick up. The district administration has asked urban voters to log onto the election website to link directly and not to wait for special drives.
“Even after a month, we are not drawing a good response. We would want urban voters to log onto the election website and submit the details of the Aadhaar and the EPIC so that they can be linked under the programme. They can also do so at the Electoral Registration Offices, but urban voters, having access to internet services, can do it directly,’’ said deputy election officer Samiksha Chandrakar Gokule.
The drive will be on till June 30. The election officer said that citizens should link their EPIC number with their Aadhaar number online on the website and those who did not have an EPIC, should contact the election office at the old Zilla Parishad building on the first floor. Presently, the EPIC coverage is 91 per cent.
Pune district has 70 lakh voters. Voters have to submit details under a special form that asks EPIC number as well as Aadhaar number. The drive is focussed on collection of details of Aadhaar card, voluntary disclosure of duplication of names, improvement of image quality in the electoral roll as well as collating mobile number and e-mail addresses.
The ECI wants to have a clean electoral roll. Despite completion of the summary revision, errors were noticed. The drive is aimed at an electoral roll without defects, errors or multiple entries. The election officer added that those whose names figured in two constituencies should submit form 7 for deletion of name. “We would be scanning for such names and issuing notices. If there is no response, the names would be automatically deleted,’’ said Gokule.
Feeding of the Aadhaar number in the EPIC database will be done through a National Voters Service Portal, using web services through election commission website or through an SMS to 51969 or by email or by a mobile app. The app is still being developed.
The process can be initiated by calling 1950, a toll-free number, or by submitting the Aadhaar number and the EPIC number in a duly filled format along with a photocopy of EPIC and Aadhaar card. The programme is aimed at achieving 100 per cent coverage by July as per ECI guidelines. The commission has asked the CEO to monitor the programme closely and take stock of the situation, the target achieved and the review of the work remaining.
