Port Blair, Jan. 25: The 13th National Voters Day with the theme 'Nothing like voting, I vote for sure' was celebrated in the UT of A&N Islands today. To mark the Day, a function was organized in the conference hall of DBRAIT in which the Chief Electoral Officer, A&N Islands, Shri Binay Bhushan, IAS was the chief guest. During the programme, a video message of Hon’ble Chief Election Commissioner of India, Shri Rajeev Kumar on National Voters’ Day and ‘Main Bharat Hoon’ song launched by ECI was screened. e-EPIC to newly registered voters was also issued and pledge on NVD was administered by the CEO to the gathering.
Addressing the gathering, the Chief Electoral Officer, A&N Islands greeted Islanders on the occasion of the 13th National Voters Day and stated that India is the largest democracy in the World and every eligible voter has the right to vote. Further, he stated that the Election Commission of India has focus on popularization of new technological tools that enabled the Commission to bring in more efficiency, widespread reach, and accountability in the conduct of free and fair elections.
Under the guidance of Election Commission of India, A&N Administration has organized series of activities aimed at maximizing voter enrolment by building awareness amongst all sections of our society. Right to vote is an important right in any democracy and every vote counts, said the CEO requesting the eligible voters to vote freely and fairly, without fear or inducement, whenever there is an election. The CEO also showered all praise for the students of JNRM for staging Nukkad Natak and cultural programmes on the importance of voting and power of vote.
The CEO, Jt. CEO and Dy. CEO jointly gave away the prizes to the winners of various competitions organised as part of the NVD celebrations. The CEO also felicitated Ms Pushpa and Shri Sanjay, BLOs for their pain staking efforts to register new voters and for creating awareness about participating in election process. The CEO also presented certificate & reward to Ms. Shravani, a student of Boys School for creating a beautiful poster while participating in National Voter Awareness contest which was displayed to the audience during the function.
In his address on the occasion, the Joint Chief Electoral Officer, A&N Island, Shri Hari Kallikkat, IAS said, National Voters’ Day is celebrated on January 25 every year across the country since 2011 to mark the Foundation Day of Election Commission of India, i.e. 25th January, 1950. The main purpose of the NVD celebration is to create electoral awareness amongst citizens and encourage them to participate in the electoral process. The Jt. CEO further said that this year’s logo reflects the joy and diversity of voting. The Ashoka Chakra in the background stands for the world's largest democracy, while each voter's inked finger symbolizes their active participation in the electoral process and a checkmark represents a voter's ability to make a well-informed choice. He also urged voters to avail online facilities for registration, shifting, deletion and correction by downloading Voter Helpline App or log on to ECI’s website www.nvsp.in, www.voterportal.eci.gov.in&www.ceoandaman.nic.in.
Earlier, welcoming the chief guest and others present on the occasion, the Deputy CEO, Shri Dilkhush Meena, IAS while informing the gathering about the significance of the Day, said the primary goal of NVD is to increase voter turnout and education about the electoral process among the general public. One of the largest celebrations in the country, NVD is observed on a variety of scales, including the national, state, district, constituency, and polling booth levels, he added.
The function concluded with the vote of thanks proposed by the Assistant Electoral Registration Officer, Shri Ramesh Kumar.