EC upgrades EVM ballot papers for Bihar polls: Coloured photos of candidates, bigger fonts and more

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The Election Commission of India (ECI) has revised the guidelines to make Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) ballot papers more readable.

According to an offical statement, starting from Bihar, the EVMs will have coloured photographs of candidates for the first time, with the candidate’s face occupying three-fourths of the photo space.

The revised guidelines also mandates serial number to be displayed more prominently.

The serial numbers of candidates and none of the other (NOTA) option will be printed in the international form of Indian numerals and the font size will be 30 and in bold for clarity.

It also said that to ensure uniformity, the names of all candidates and NOTA will be printed in the same font type and font size large enough for easy readability.

The ECI has revised the existing guidelines under Rule 49B of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, for the design and printing of EVM Ballot Papers to enhance their clarity and readability, the statement said.

It said that the initiative is in line with the 28 initiatives already taken by the ECI in the past six months to streamline and improve election processes and enhance convenience for voters.

"Henceforth, photographs of candidates will be printed in colour on the EVM Ballot Paper. The candidate’s face will occupy three-fourths of the photo space for better visibility," the statement said.

"Serial numbers of candidates/NOTA will be printed in the international form of Indian numerals. The font size will be 30 and in bold for clarity," it further said.

The ECI said, "To ensure uniformity, the names of all candidates/NOTA will be printed in the same font type and font size large enough for easy readability."

According to the ECI, the EVM Ballot Papers will be printed on 70 GSM paper and for Assembly Elections, pink-coloured paper of specified RGB values will be used.

"The upgraded EVM Ballot Papers will be used in the upcoming elections, starting with Bihar," it said.