The facility, introduced in the 2020 Bihar assembly elections that were conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic, will ensure that poll officials visit 82 lakh senior citizens aged above 85 years, and 88.4 lakh registered PwD voters, at their residence to help them exercise their franchise. Voters will be able to mark their choice of candidate on the postal ballot without compromising secrecy.
As per Rule 27A of the Conduct of Election Rules, amended in 2020, postal ballot facility was extended to senior citizens above 80 years, PwDs (defined as persons with 40% benchmark disability), poll officers, and Covid-positive persons. Around a fortnight back, govt revised this rule to raise the qualifying age for senior citizens to 85 years.
A senior EC officer said reviews with the chief electoral officers of the last 11 states that went to polls had revealed that 97-98% of senior citizens aged above 80 years chose to vote in person rather than through postal ballot.
The total number of senior citizens above 80 years is around 1.8 crore, with those aged 80-85 years being around 98 lakh. Since the EC distributes postal ballots to all eligible senior citizens, raising the eligibility age has reduced their task by 55%.
“The 80-plus voters, who have witnessed Independence, have shown far more keenness to vote physically, setting an example for youths who are not so enthusiastic despite being able-bodied. For the former, voting is a reason to venture out of their homes. Many times, they are accompanied by one or more family members, who may not vote otherwise,” said an official.