Lok Sabha polls are just around the corner. As people follow political trends closely and determine which party to side with, there are many first-time voters, mainly the youth which is the most active generation of this century.
Around 89.9 crore voters are eligible to vote in the Lok Sabha elections this year. Out of these, 1.6 crore are first-time voters aged between 18 and 19 years of age. This number is most likely to go up in the coming few months.
There is an addition of 8.4 crore new voters from the last Lok Sabha polls that were conducted in 2014. At the time of 2014 announcement, there were a total of 81.5 crore voters but the final count increased to 83.4 crore.
Photo: BCCL
Times of India reported that as per the final electoral rolls with reference to January 01, 2019 there are 89.7 crore voters across the country which consists of 46.5 crore men, 43.2 crore women and 33,109 voters belonging to the ¡®third gender¡¯.
In 2014, 43.7 crore voters were men and 39.7 crore voters were women. While 28,527 voters belonged to the third gender category.
The Election Commission of India in a press release dated February 22, 2019, also said that there was a substantial increase in the number of service voters.
Service Voters are people who are enrolled in the Armed Forces of India, from Assam Rifles, CRPF, BSF, ITBF; GREF in Border Road Organisation; Central Industrial Security Force, are employed under the Government of India, outside a post of India or are member of an Armed Police Force of a State, and serving outside that state.
A total of 16,62,993 service personnel have been enrolled as Service Electors in the country in the final, last part of electoral roll 2019. In 2014 the corresponding figure was 13,27,627.
Almost 1.7% of the total electors are first-time voters aged between 18 and 19. However, this figure is less than the 2.3 crore voters in the same age group in 2014 elections.?
Reportedly, Rajasthan has added the highest number of electoral voters which stands at 20.3 lakh followed by 20 Lakh in West Bengal, 16.76 Lakh in Uttar Pradesh and 13.6 lakh and 11.99 lakh in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra respectively.
Photo: BCCL
General election to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh are expected to be announced in the first week of March.
Yesterday, the Delhi Police began invention on a complaint filed by the ECI on fake news about NRIs being allowed to vote online in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
This came after social media, especially WhatsApp was being flooded with messages claiming that the ECI has allowed NRIs holding Indian passport will be allowed to cast their votes online.
Denying the claims making rounds on social media an EC spokesperson said no such facility has been extended to NRIs.