Global representatives get a taste of India’s mammoth polls

As the two-month-long Indian election proceeds, envoys of South Korea and Indonesia and the heads and representatives of 20 Election Management Bodies (EMBs) from across the World in New Delhi showed an interest in the polls and requested to visit polling booths.

The 20 representatives include 65 delegates, who have been invited by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to join the Election Visitors Program.

The countries include Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Fiji, Georgia, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar, Romania, Russia, Srilanka, Suriname, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Uzbekistan and Zimbabwe and International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA).

The delegates visited various polling stations in North West Delhi, East Delhi, Chandni Chowk, South Delhi and Gurgaon on Sunday, during the sixth phase of polls to observe the action on the ground.

Umesh Sinha, senior Deputy Election Commissioner said, "They visited polling stations in Gurgaon and Delhi and observed the process. They were quite happy to see the participation of voters and the festive atmosphere."

They also visited polling stations which are managed entirely by women polling staff and some model polling station and interacted with the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi.

Australia's envoy to India, Harinder Sindhu, after one such visit, said, "It's been a really inspiring experience. How can you get so many people to vote? The answer is a well-organised EC and its officials. It's a good, organised system."

Delegates included a team of six members and nine senior Election Officers from the Election Commission of Myanmar visiting India as part of a training program being conducted by the ECI's India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) under Ministry of External Affairs' sponsorship.

Chief Election Commissioner, Sunil Arora, had briefed the delegates, saying, "The objective and intention of the Commission is to always keep learning from the experiences of the past for necessary course corrections for the future."