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Context: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has amended the existing scheme for the use of government-owned electronic media by political parties during elections by introducing a provision to issue digital time vouchers through an Information Technology (IT) platform.

Details

• The Election Commission of India has revised the existing framework for political parties' use of government-owned electronic media. This was accomplished by instituting a mechanism for issuing digital time vouchers using an Information Technology (IT) platform.

Background

• The scheme was initially notified in January 1998 and holds a statutory basis under Section 39A of the R.P. Act, 1951. It was announced after comprehensive consultations with recognized National and State Parties and is aimed at ensuring unbiased access to government-owned electronic media during elections for campaigning.
  • Under this scheme, an impartial base time is allotted to each National Party and Recognized State Party of the state concerned uniformly on Doordarshan & All India Radio (AIR) and the additional time to be allotted to the parties is decided based on the poll performance of the parties in the last assembly elections from the respective States/UT or in the last general Elections to Lok Sabha, as the case may be.
• The exact date and time during which the above telecasts/broadcasts will be made by the official representatives of any party is predetermined, by a lot, by the Prasar Bharati Corporation in consultation with ECI and the presence of political party representatives.

Recent Decision

• The political parties will not be required to send their representatives to ECI/CEO Offices for the collection of the time vouchers physically during elections. The ECI introduced provision to issue digital time vouchers through an Information Technology (IT) platform.
• Time vouchers for 5 and 10 minutes would be handed to each party. The total amount of time allowed to a party for broadcasts on All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan is split into these two denominations.
• During the election campaign, the party may decide which representatives use these time vouchers. There is a restriction placed on individual representatives, which states that no such representative shall be permitted to use more than 20 minutes of the total time granted to that party, either on Doordarshan or on AIR.

Challenges and Way Forward

• Some of the challenges that may arise in implementing this scheme are;
  • Ensuring the security and reliability of the IT platform.
  • Preventing misuse or manipulation of time vouchers by any party or individual.
  • Maintaining the quality and standards of telecasts/broadcasts by political parties.
  • Resolving any disputes or grievances that may arise among political parties or between them and ECI or Prasar Bharati.
• To overcome the challenges, some possible steps that can be taken are strengthening the IT infrastructure and cyber security measures, establishing clear guidelines and rules for issuing and using time vouchers, monitoring and auditing the telecasts/broadcasts by political parties, providing timely feedback and redressal mechanisms for any complaints or issues, and conducting regular reviews and evaluations of the scheme.

Conclusion

• The introduction of a provision to issue digital time vouchers through an Information Technology (IT) platform for the allotment of time to political parties on All India Radio and Doordarshan during elections is indeed a significant step in leveraging technology for the electoral process in India.

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ELECTION AND AIRWAVES: https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/election-and-airwaves

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1940589

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