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RUPA AND THE MAGIC OF ELCs- A MODERN FAIRY TALE FROM TELANGANA
ECI SVEEP posted an article in New Initiative
RUPA AND THE MAGIC OF ELCs- A MODERN FAIRY TALE FROM TELANGANA Rupa lives in a small village called Adilabad in Telangana, in a remote area, far away from town. Yet it has a good government school in which Rupa is studying in class X. She is a bright, active student and is very interested in her studies and extracurricular activities. One day while she was preparing for her examinations, the electricity failed and the village was plunged into darkness. She heaved a sigh of resignation. This was a regular feature in the village. Electricity failures were frequent and, in addition to this, there was a lack of essential supplies to the village. Rupa, keenly aware of these shortcomings in her village, was often upset by them. One day, she asked her mother, Amma, why is our village like this? Why is there no regular supply of electricity, no ration supplies and those people who bully everyone, why are they not taken to task? The mother looked sadly at Rupa and said, “Listen, child, the blame lies with us ourselves. We elected the wrong person this time. It is the fault of people like your father, who got lured and misled by the liquor and ELCS are run according to the guidelines and directives money distributed by the candidates and voted for them. Such a mistake! And now we are all suffering due to wrong voting decisions.” Rupa thought for a minute and glanced at her Mother, who looked quite unhappy. She said, 'Amma, you never had Voter Education and Electoral Literacy Clubs or ELCS during your childhood.’ ‘What is an ELC?’ asked Rupa’s mother. Rupa explained, ‘An ELC is a Electoral Literacy Club. So. just like “literacy” classes teach you how to read and write, this club helps you to learn how to understand the fair voting process and make a correct decision about voting. Amma, in these ELC meetings we are taught how to enroll and register as voters and to cast our vote in an honest and responsible way, and choose the right and deserving leader.’ The mother looked at her daughter in wonder. ‘This is a really good way to teach people the right way to vote. How lucky you are! I wish we had such ELCS during our childhood. But then, as you know, I never went to school when I was your age.’ Rupa smiled confidently. She said, ‘Amma, there is no need to feel you missed out on it all. You can even now learn all about voting and how to make the right decision- right here at the Chunav Pathshala in our village. You can become a member of the Chunav Pathshala set up at our polling station and learn all about ethical voting through interesting activities, games and films. It's even better than going to everyday school' Amma cheered up hearing her daughter's words. "Really? she exclaimed. ‘I will become a member of Chunav Pathshala tomorrow itself. And not only that, I will encourage all my friends in our village to become members, too.’ Rupa gave her mother a tight hug. Literate or not, Rupa's mother was always a bright spark, ready to better herself. No wonder Rupa had taken after her. As promised, her mother became a member of the Chunav Pathshala and also helped many others in the village to become members. Soon, the village was well acquainted with the electoral process and the rules of voting. Rupa is now soon to become a proud voter of India on completing 18 years. She recollects the day when she motivated her mother and started the process of voter awareness right in her own home. Thanks to the Electoral Literacy Club at her school she is well informed about elections and voting. Her mother, who also has social welfare and progress at heart, motivated several villagers to enroll in the Chunav Pathshala. Now the village is not ignorant about voting any more. She is an aware future voter of India and knows that there are 9,376 ELCS in Telangana State now. These ELCs are run according to the guidelines and directives laid down by the Election Commission of India. This was just one small step taken by a young girl to create awareness. It was a step towards a change which had the power to motivate a hundred footsteps in the right direction - to vote ethically; to vote responsibly as citizens of India. Finally, it upholds the democratic pledge that the right decision in casting the vote always leads to achievement of the desired change in society. - (Published in My Voter Matters, Jan 2021) Story-32 Rupa and the Magic of ELCS A Modern Fairy Tale from Telangana.pdf -
ABILITY EXPRESS – EMPOWERING VOTERS WITH DISABILITIES The human spirit is one of ability, perseverance and courage that no disability can take away. It has always been the endeavour of the Election Commission of India to facilitate ease of access to all voters to ensure holistic participation of all in the festival of democracy that is the Great Indian Election. Assured Minimum Facilities at polling stations, volunteers for aid and assistance, provision of ramp and wheelchair, transport to and from the booth, sign language interpreters and Braille EVMs are just some of the initiatives of the Commission to abide by its motto of ‘No Voter to be Left Behind’. Buoyed by the dedicated efforts of the Commission, the South 24 Parganas District Administration in West Bengal undertook a unique initiative to empower Persons with Disabilities through five specially designed vehicles called ‘Ability Express’. Developed in due consultation with disability experts, the vehicles were designed in such manner so that electors with any type of disability could experience the process of voting virtually and get inspired to participate in the electoral process of the largest democracy of the world. After flag off on 6th March 2021 by the District Election Officer & District Magistrate, South 24 Parganas in the presence of the especially abled icons of the district - one Ability Express was allotted for each of the five Sub-Divisions of the district namely Alipore Sadar, Diamond Harbour, Kakdwip, Baruipur and Canning for movement as per the comprehensive date and area wise calendar prepared. Prior to this, mapping of PwD voters by the local Booth Level Officers and Anganwadi Workers helped ascertain the number of PwD voters in the district and the route of the five vehicles was charted accordingly. With an audio-visual system for step-by-step demonstration of the process of voting, instructions in Braille on the wall panels of the vehicle, wheelchair and ramp for electors with locomotor and neurological disorders and sign language interpreters for hearing and speech impaired electors – concerted efforts were made to make this initiative accessible to voters with all kinds of disabilities. After settling up at an earmarked spot at a pre-scheduled time, especially abled electors were guided into the Ability Express to stand at marked spots and press the buzzer placed at the wall of the vehicle fixed against each such spot. After pressing each of the buzzers, the electors got the unique opportunity to experience the process of entering into the polling station maintaining COVID protocols and the entire polling process. As they moved along from the First, Second and Third Polling Officer to the Voting Compartment, the Presiding Officer virtually explained the important rules to be followed inside the polling station, especially maintaining the secrecy of voting. In addition to this, the Ability Express also had a Special Ability coordinator cum demonstrator and Quiz Master for necessary guidance and support to all especially abled electors to make them aware of various important facilities. The Ability Express also had the provision of web-based services such as the NVSP portal, using the Voter Helpline App, generating e-EPIC and more right on the spot. Empowering PwD electors by acknowledging their ability instead of their disability was widely appreciated and this initiative went a long way in boosting the confidence of PwD electors ahead of the polls. With the presence of District SVEEP Icons and District Especially Abled Icons, the five Ability Express vehicles covered more than 12,000 KMs and connected about 85,000 especially abled electors from the remotest areas of all of the 31 (thirty-one) Assembly Constituencies of South 24 Parganas District. -Inputs from CEO West Bengal Story-34 Success Story _Ability Express_South 24 Parganas (1).pdf
