THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Allaying concerns of privacy breach in the wake of the introduction of the provision to link Aadhaar cards with Elector Photo I-Card (EPIC), Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sanjay Kaul said the security of voters’ Aadhaar data would be ensured. The CEO was speaking to reporters after chairing a meeting of representatives of various political parties to discuss the new provision that was introduced following a recommendation by the Election Commission.
The CEO said seeding of Aadhaar data with EPIC was being done to prevent anomalies in the electoral roll, such as duplication of entries, and to weed out fake voters. “However, this is not at all mandatory but a purely voluntary initiative,” Kaul said. While some political parties who attended the meeting welcomed the provision, a few others were opposed to it, he added.
Of the 2.72 crore voters in the state, 6,485 have already linked their electoral identity card with Aadhaar. For linking the Aadhaar number to EPIC, a voter who figures in the electoral roll needs to apply through Form 6B. The form is available on the website www.nvsp.in or through ‘Voter Helpline’ mobile application. The voter needs to enter the Aadhaar number in the corresponding column in the form.
The CEO said citizens who have turned 17 can apply in advance for enrolment in the voters’ list. Earlier, all citizens who have attained the age of 18 years as on January 1 were eligible to enrol their names in the electoral roll. “Earlier, a voter who did not turn 18 as on January 1 had to wait for a year till the next electoral roll revision begins. From now on, four chances are available in a year to enrol as an elector,” Kaul said. Besides January 1, the other qualifying dates for attaining the age of 18 years are April 1, July 1 and October 1.
An annual summary revision of the voters’ list will be carried out with January 1, 2023, as the qualifying date.The name of the person, who has submitted an application for enrolment in advance, will automatically figure in the voters’ list upon attainment of 18 years. Thereafter, EPIC will be issued to the voter.