Baby Chakraborty, KalimNews, June 5, 2025 | Kolkata: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced a major technological upgrade to its voter turnout reporting system, aiming to ensure faster, more accurate, and transparent updates on polling day. The initiative, which will be operational ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, marks a shift toward real-time reporting through the use of a newly integrated digital system.
Under this revamped process, Presiding Officers (PROs) at each polling station will now enter approximate voter turnout data into the ECINET App every two hours on the day of polling. This replaces the earlier manual method, which involved Sector Officers collecting the data and forwarding it to Returning Officers (ROs) through phone calls or messaging apps, often causing delays of several hours. The updated digital platform will allow constituency-level data to be aggregated in real time and reflected every two hours through the Voter Turnout (VTR) App, improving public access to voting trends throughout the day.
Once polling ends, the final voter turnout data will be entered by the PROs before leaving the polling station, depending on network availability. In regions with limited connectivity, the data can be saved offline and uploaded later. This ensures the swift publication of final turnout percentages and addresses the common public concerns caused by delays in previous reporting mechanisms.
While the ECINET and VTR Apps streamline non-statutory public updates, the statutory requirement under Rule 49S of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961—mandating the submission of Form 17C by Presiding Officers to polling agents—remains unchanged. This form contains the official count of votes recorded at each station and continues to serve as the formal record for candidates and election officials.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has underlined the importance of timely public communication and transparency, particularly in the face of increasing concerns over the authenticity of electoral rolls and voter turnout figures. Allegations regarding inflated turnout data and the presence of fake voters—raised by opposition parties including Congress and Trinamool Congress during recent elections in Maharashtra and Haryana—have underscored the need for reform. In response, the Commission’s move to enhance the VTR system signals a proactive approach ahead of key electoral events in Bihar this year, and in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu in 2026.
The Election Commission reiterated that the upgraded system is not a replacement for statutory procedures but rather a tool to improve public engagement and confidence in the electoral process. With this development, the ECI continues its commitment to modernizing the voting experience while upholding democratic integrity.
