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New Delhi: President Pratibha Patil will distribute electors photo identity cards
(EPIC) to five newly eligible voters at a function here Tuesday to
mark the first National Voters' Day.
The union cabinet had last week decided to observe Jan 25, the day
the election commission of India was set up in 1950, as the
National Voters' Day.
The newly enrolled voters will be given a badge with a slogan
"Proud to be a voter - Ready to Vote," during the felicitation
ceremony. They will also be administered a pledge.
An election commission official said that newly eligible voters
and those who registered with Jan 1, 2011 as the qualifying date
will be felicitated in over eight lakh polling station areas
across the country Jan 25.
The spokesman said a large number of voters' education activities
were being taken up in various states, including multi-media
campaigns to popularise electoral participation.
The observance of National Voters' Day is expected to give the
youth a sense of citizenship, empowerment, pride and participation
and also inspire them to exercise their franchise, the official
added.
The commission had also launched a countrywide campaign to reach
out to the newly eligible (18+) electors and to register them in
the revision of electoral rolls.
"As a result millions of youth in the 18-19 age group have been
enrolled," he said.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni had said last
week that the election commission had decided to take up a
vigorous exercise to identify all eligible voters reaching 18
years of age Jan 1 every year.
They will be enrolled and given the EPIC card Jan 25 every year at
a brief felicitation to be organised in each polling station area,
she added.
The Election Commission, which celebrated 60 years of its setting
up last year, is organising a valedictory function of its diamond
jubilee Tuesday.
The president will present awards for best electoral practices to
eight officials.
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, Law Minister M. Veerappa Moily,
members of the commission, political leaders and former chief
election commissioners are expected to attend the valedictory
function.
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