New Delhi, May 13 (H.S.): The Election Commission of India (ECI) has addressed a longstanding issue with Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) numbers that persisted for nearly two decades. This problem involved valid voters being assigned the same EPIC numbers across different constituencies. Since 2005, states and Union Territories utilized varying alphanumeric series for EPIC numbers linked to assembly constituencies, which were modified post-delimitation in 2008. Despite these changes, some areas continued to use incorrect series due to old series or typographical errors. After thorough verification, it was determined that voters with identical EPIC numbers were indeed legitimate and belonged to different polling stations.

Consequently, these voters have received new identity cards with distinct EPIC numbers. It’s important to note that similar EPIC numbers had no impact on voting rights or election outcomes. This initiative aimed to bolster electoral transparency and prevent future discrepancies. The resolution involved Chief Electoral Officers reviewing electoral rolls of over 99 crore voters at 1.05 million polling stations.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar