New Delhi, February 24 A day-long conference organized by the Election Commission with state election panels began here on Tuesday, with presentations on EVMs, ECINET, and the sharing of electoral rolls being the main agenda.
Addressing the gathering, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar stated that, in the national interest and in accordance with the constitution, the Election Commission and state election commissions (SECs) should work together, keeping the elector in mind.
While the Election Commission is mandated to hold elections for the post of the President of India, the Vice President, Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, state legislative assemblies, and state legislative councils, the SECs hold panchayat and municipal elections.
The Commission also launched a book titled 'A Confluence of Democracies' at the roundtable discussion, which was held after a gap of 27 years. The last such conference was held in 1999.
"The day-long conference will include presentations on EVMs, ECINET, and the sharing of electoral rolls," a spokesperson said.
State election panels take the Election Commission's electoral rolls, which are used for assembly elections, and use them according to their requirements for holding local body elections.
The lifespan of an EVM is 15 years, and machines at the end of their life cycle are usually given to state election panels for holding local elections.
The Election Commission currently uses 'M3' or Mark III type of EVMs to hold elections for the Lok Sabha and assembly.
The Election Commission does not charge states for using their EVMs. Once an EVM leaves the Election Commission's custody, it is no longer referred to as an ECI-EVM.
Machines that complete their life cycle are destroyed under security.
The Union law ministry is provided funds in the Union budget to help the Election Commission buy the required EVMs from Electronics Corporation of India Ltd (ECIL) and Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) – the two PSUs which manufacture the voting machines.
The Election Commission will also offer to help state election commissions develop technology platforms similar to ECINET, as well as training support for their officials in election management.
ECINET is a digital platform to simplify election-related services.
Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of all 36 states and UTs will also attend the event, the Election Commission said.
"The primary objective of the roundtable discussion is to foster synergies in the functioning of the Election Commission and SECs with respect to electoral processes and logistics within their respective legal frameworks," the Election Commission had earlier said.
