Guwahati, Jan. 7: Voters in Assam will get Elector’s Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) for the first time, with distribution beginning in 29 Assembly constituencies from next week.
The deputy chief electoral officer of Assam, Pradip Kumar Doley, told The Telegraph that more than 40 lakh voters in 29 of the state’s 126 Assembly constituencies will get their voter photo ID cards next week.
“The distribution of EPICs in the remaining Assembly constituencies is likely to take place next month,” he added.
This makes it clear that the EPIC will make its debut in the state in 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
Doley said booth-level officers would distribute the identity cards among 40,38,587 voters at their respective polling booths in the 29 constituencies.
These 29 constituencies are South Salmara, Dhubri, Gauripur, Golakganj, Bilasipara East, Bongaigaon, Abhayapuri North, Goalpara East, Goalpara West, Jaleswar, Sorbhog, Bhabanipur, Patacharkuchi, Tamulpur, Nalbari, Barkhetry, Dharmapur, Barama, Chapaguri, Kalaigaon, Sipajhar, Mangaldoi, Dalgaon, Rangapara, Sootea, Gohpur, Jagiroad, Morigaon and Laharighat.
Sources said the Election Commission had put pressure on the state election department soon after the Assembly elections in April 2011 to start the photo electoral rolls (PER) process so that it could be introduced in the 2014 general election. The process was introduced in the 2009 general election, barring Nagaland, Assam and Jammu and Kashmir.
The development assumes significance because earlier attempts at introducing the photo voter list or photo identity cards did not take off because of apprehension that it would affect the detection and deportation of illegal foreigners.
The state election department took the first tentative steps towards having photo electoral rolls with the state government shortlisting the Kamrup (metro) district for the launch of the pilot project in September, 2011. The PER was prepared on the basis of existing electoral rolls. Besides details of the voters in the existing electoral rolls, the PER also has their photographs, helping those on election duty to prevent impersonation and to make the identification of voters smooth.
The preparation of the PER was preceded by statewide summary revision of electoral rolls and the final electoral roll was published yesterday.
Doley said there had been a 3.32 per cent increase in the number of voters from the draft electoral rolls published in October last year. The number of electors has gone up from 1,81,00,869 in the draft rolls to 1,87,22,435 in the final rolls with an increase of 6,21,566. He described the increase “within average limit”.
The total number of doubtful voters in the final rolls is 1,43,227. Doubtful voters or D voters are those who are suspected to be illegal migrants and their cases are pending before foreigners tribunals.
