Less than 1% of voters downloaded e-EPIC

Less than 1% of voters downloaded e-EPIC

Subject :Polity

Context: Only Over 67 lakh voters have downloaded a digital voter ID, known as the electronic Electoral Photo ID Card (e-EPIC), from the time the document was made available by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

• Along with e-PAN and e-Aadhaar, the E-EPIC is one of the few generally accepted identity documents that can be downloaded as a legally valid PDF file.

Digital Voter ID Card (e-EPIC)

• The digital voter card is not expected to look too different from its physical form.
• It will be available as a PDF file and can be downloaded on one’s phone or computer.
• The soft copy may also have a QR code that will carry the voter’s enrolment details such as name and date of birth and address.
• This is still just a proposal and needs to be approved by the Election Commission.

How to avail it?

• To avail this facility, an eligible voter will have to provide her mobile number or email address to the EC machinery at the time of applying for enrolment in the voters’ list.
• Once her name is included in the electoral roll, she will be intimated through an SMS or email.
• The new voter can then download the Voter Card through OTP (One Time Password) authentication.
• Existing voters may have to re-verify their details with the EC (similar to the Bank KYC process) and provide their email or mobile phone number to get their cards in the electronic form.

Benefits offered

• An electronic card will help the EC save costs on printing and distributing a hard copy of EPIC.
• The EC feels that voters too will find it useful to have the PDF file of her voter card on her phone.
• This will do away with the necessity of first producing a voter’s slip on the day of voting.