India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM), under the Election Commission of India (ECI), organised a capacity-building programme on “Electoral Technology” for election officials from Myanmar.
Among the major milestones achieved by the Election Commission of India during the 2019 Indian General Election, the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) emerged as a significant innovation in electoral management.
Compared to 13,27,627 registered service electors during the 2014 General Elections, a record 18,02,646 service electors were enrolled in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, making it one of the largest exercises involving service voters in the world’s democratic process. For the first time, online registration for service voters was enabled through the dedicated portal. Postal ballots were transmitted electronically in one direction to reduce processing time, save resources, and minimise human error.
Personnel serving in Central Armed Forces under the Arms Act and government officials posted in Indian embassies abroad are classified as service voters and are eligible for online enrolment.
Of the total service electors enrolled in the 2019 elections:
- 10,16,245 belonged to the Ministry of Defence
- 7,82,595 were from the Ministry of Home Affairs, including Central Armed Police Forces
- 3,539 belonged to the Ministry of External Affairs
- 267 were from State Police forces
During the seven phases of the 2019 General Elections, all 18,02,646 postal ballots were electronically dispatched through the flagship ETPBS platform developed by the Election Commission of India. Out of these, 10,84,266 electronically transmitted postal ballots were returned, registering a turnout of 60.14 per cent.
