“The EC is most likely to go for voter ID cards as these will create a sense of ownership among the voters,” Election Commissioner Ila Sharma told Republica.
According to EC officials, the voter ID cards will be like general ID cards which will be given to voters in a plastic envelope. “It will not be costlier than the publishing of the voters´ list for the polls,” said an EC official on condition of anonymity, adding, “The EC should be spending just Rs 10 million more for printing the voter ID cards.” [break]
EC Spokesman Bir Bahadur Rai maintained that voter IDs can help give the voters a distinct recognition.
However, he said the commission is yet to take a final decision regarding the issue. “We have just held preliminary discussions,” Rai added.
Sources at the EC said that even the political parties and voters have stressed the need for separate ID cards for the new CA polls. “It (voter ID cards) may also be supportive in terms of voter turnout in the election,” argued another EC official.
According to EC officials, the voter ID cards will include the photos of voters and other personal details.
The constitutional body will not introduce voter ID cards that are like SMART cards as the government is already preparing to launch the multi-purpose biometric national ID cards, which will also function as voter IDs.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA), which is entrusted with launching the biometric national ID card, will use information being gathered by the EC during the ongoing voter registration.
MoHA has formed a separate national ID management centre and invited a global tender. The first phase of the $117 million project is being undertaken under a grant assistance of $8 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The EC has been updating the electoral rolls with biometrics and photos. The constitutional body has so far registered 12 million voters with photos and biometrics in the new electoral rolls.
The EC estimates that about 13.5 million voters will be registered in the electoral rolls by mid-July. The commission has already set July 15 as the cutoff date for the eligible voting age in the upcoming CA election.
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