GUWAHATI: In a bid to make the upcoming general elections more inclusive and participatory, the Assam election department launched the ‘i-help’ initiative at a meeting held here on Sunday.
Assam chief electoral officer, Mukesh Sahu launched the initiative, which is a joint effort of the office of the chief electoral officer, Assam and Common Service Centres, Assam to promote digital electoral literacy in the state.
The Common Service Centres are internet-enabled access points spread throughout the country delivering various government and non-government digital services (e-services) to the citizens.
Through its vast network, particularly in rural areas, the centres are uniquely positioned to significantly extend the awareness and outreach activities of CEO, Assam under Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) in the state. It is geared to ensure that no voter is left behind.
“Today, we are experiencing a transition to the digital world. To make the transition smoother for the general public, the CSCs can play a vital role to educate the people on the usage of IT-enabled services related to election. This will fill the digital-divide and fulfill the objective of turning the general election more inclusive and participatory,” Sahu said.
The CSCs have a presence in all the 2,528 gaon panchayats in the state. There are 4,587 functional CSCs in Assam.
The CEO further called upon the representatives of CSCs to mobilise the citizens and provide education on voter rights and electoral process.
“The presence of the CSCs at the grassroots level can be utilised to educate the voters on ECI’s IT-enabled services like c-Vigil, voter helpline no. It will be a win-win situation if the objective of voter awareness is fulfilled and it will also help the CSCs to build lasting relationship with the people,” the CEO said.
CSCs will have dedicated help desks to facilitate persons with disabilities for online registration, transport facility, wheel chairs in the polling booths, informs an official statement here.