E-Voting Revolution: Bihar to Become First Indian State to Offer Online Voting in 2025
Bihar has become the first Indian state to introduce smartphone-based E-voting. This will be an era of digital democracy. This announcement by the State Election Commission will change how different categories of voters castes their votes in the elections. This is going to be very accessible for those who face difficulties in reaching election booths. Students or work professionals who are away from their hometown will be able to take full advantage of this service.
We have covered everything about the E-Voting in Bihar initiative in this article, including who can use this service, step-by-step registration and voting process, official app details, and the list of municipalities where this digital voting system will be implemented in Bihar. You can use the following sections to navigate through the information as per your preference:
Table of Contents
Who Can Use the E-Voting Facility?
The State Election Commission has announced that this facility is not available for everyone right now. This will be implemented in phases. Currently, in the first phase of this system will be introduced in municipal and by-elections in some selected urban areas across Bihar. The people who can avail these services will be as follows :
- Pregnant women
- Senior citizens aged 80 and above
- Persons with disabilities (PwDs)
- Patients suffering from terminal illnesses
- Migrant workers and professionals residing outside Bihar for work
The government is focusing on easing the process for these group can they are generally left out due to health or travelling issues. So to increase the turnout ratio, government is providing them the option to vote directly from their smartphones. This will help in reducing the voter drop out ratio and which make the election results more inclusive.
How E-Voting in Bihar Will Work
The process is very structured and secure. Eligible voters will be able to access the feature by simply downloading a mobile app. The app will be available on the Google Play Store or the official State Election Commission website. Voters can follow the given steps :
Download the app – For now, only Android smartphones running 5G or higher versions will be compatible for the app.
Register for E-Voting – After downloading the app, open the app and click on “E-Voting Registration.”
Identity Verification – Voters must enter their EPIC number or registered name. After this, an OTP will be sent to their mobile number. They can confirm their identity by entering the OTP.
Declare Eligibility – The voter will have to self-identify under one of the eligible categories: elderly, pregnant, PwD, etc.
Confirm Registration – Only two individuals are eligible to register per smartphone. After registration, make sure you use the same mobile device for voting that was used for registration.
The app will show a digital e-ballot confirmation after the completion of voting process. It is very much similar to the paper slip displayed on a VVPAT machine in traditional voting. This confirmation ensures trust and transparency.
Where Will E-Voting in Bihar Begin?
The system is is being implemented out in a phased manner. During general elections, E-Voting in Bihar will begin in:
- Mehesi Nagar Panchayat, East Champaran
- Pakridayal, East Champaran
- Kochas, Rohtas
- Khusrupur, Naubatpur, and Vikram in Patna district
For by-elections, the selected urban local bodies are located in:
- Banka
- Buxar
- Gaya
- Saran
- Siwan
So if you fall into these districts and eligible for availing the online voting services, you should vote. Out of the above mentioned areas, Buxar is especially important, as the e-voting system will be tested there for electing the Deputy Chief Councillor and the Ward Councillor in Ward No. 20.
E-Voting with the Option to Skip
One of the interesting features of the new online system is that voters can choose not to cast their votes using the ‘Skip’ option. If they don’t want to cast their votes for a particular post, they can skip that particular section. Once skipped, the option to vote will be disabled. This is done to ensure that only single-use voting is carried out.
Transparency in Online Voting
The questions of cybersecurity and manipulation are natural with any online voting mechanism. But to ensure trust and transparency withing the new voting system, the Bihar State Election Commission has assured that there will be multiple layers of verification like biometric validation and OTP-based login.
The digital e-ballot confirmation will let voters confirm their choice, just like the VVPAT system, helping build trust in the process.
Will E-Voting in Bihar Expand Statewide?
The current implementation is just the pilot phase of this ambitious project. But, this could shape the Voting procedure of India. There is news that the system may be expanded to other municipal bodies and it would eventually reach rural panchayat elections as well.
The Bihar government emphasized that this rollout is deliberately limited in scope so that they can design as a controlled experiment to closely monitor the new system’s performance. They’ve emphasized that this rollout is deliberately limited in scope, designed as a controlled experiment to closely monitor the system’s performance. They want to gather initial data and resolve all the issues
So we can say that, E-Voting in Bihar will not replace EVMs or physical voting. It is simply an additional option available to some categories who otherwise might not vote at all due to practical limitations.
Challenges Ahead With Online Voting
The online system is quite beneficial but it doesn’t come without challenges, some of them are given below :
There’s a digital divide asOnly voters with Android phones and 5G or higher connectivity can participate.
There might be some verification issues where some individuals may misuse the eligibility declaration.
Being an online system, it is prone to technical or security breaches.
Success of this initiative totally depends on how well the voters are educated about the process. So, if you have someone in your family who’s eligible for this, educate them and encourage them to cast their votes.
But leaving these concerns aside, the overall reaction towards this system has been positive.
Conclusion
E-voting is like a revolution starting from Bihar. While other states will rely exclusively on EVMs and paper ballots, Bihar is moving toward a major reform in the voting system! The road ahead may be complex, but Bihar’s bold step is a reminder that progress often begins at the margins.
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