Prez will launch EPIC on Voters’ Day Jan. 25
National Voters’ Day, to be launched on January 25 by the Election Commission (EC) for the purpose of ensuring that the youth participate in the polling process, will witness Electoral Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) being given in 8.5 lakh polling booths across the country. It is to be inaugurated by President Pratibha Patil.
Addressing a press conference in the national capital, chief election commissioner (CEC) S.Y. Quraishi said, “We have found in the past that people’s participation in electoral rolls upgradation has not been up to the mark. With great difficulty, we reach out to the people and ask them to vote but there was continuous apathy.”
The Election Commission will soon be joining the social networking website according to the CEC. He said that the EC is all set to launch a Facebook account.
The CEC, flanked by two other election commissioners, Mr Sampath and Mr H.S. Brahma, regretted that voter turn out in towns and cities were very low.
When asked to comment on what is the status of the voting rights for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Mr Quraishi conceded that rules have not yet been framed even though a meeting was held with the secretaries of overseas affairs, external affairs and law. He added, “It is a very complex exercise. It is not very simple.”
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