To boost turnout, messages from top Constitutional authorities, new videos before each phase

The first phase of polling on April 19 saw around 66% turnout in 102 LS seats, about 4 percentage points lower than the turnout in the same constituencies in 2019.

For the first time, the EC’s ongoing voter education activities included messages from the President Droupadi Murmu and CJI DY Chandrachud. The videos being televised on Doordarshan and EC’s social media handles even before the first phase, include appeals for voting by the President.

The CJI, in his video, recorded in English and Marathi, recalled when he voted for the first time. “Our Constitution gives us a multitude of rights, but it also expects that each of us performs the duty which is cast upon us. One of the foremost duties of citizenship is to cast our vote,” the CJI said.

CEC Rajiv Kumar said: “The Commission strongly believes that partnership and collaboration are essential pillars of voter awareness programmes. It’s really heartening to see that on the Commission’s request, different institutions, influencers, celebrities having significant reach are working enthusiastically and on a pro-bono basis.”

Actor Taapsee Pannu recounted the excitement when she received her voter ID. She says she researched her options and found none of the candidates to be satisfactory and ended up picking NOTA. “I felt the need to exercise that power. There was excitement that I will contribute,” she says in the video.

Singer Adnan Sami, in a video, recalled when he voted for the first time in 2019. Originally from Pakistan, Sami had become an Indian citizen in 2016. There are people in the world who are longing for the right to vote, he said.

ISRO Chairman S Somanath remembered he had voted for the first time on paper ballots. “Your vote is an investment in our scientific and technological capabilities,” he says in the video.

The EC has also tied up with digital content creators to spread awareness. Videos by FilterCopy, a digital content organisation with over 10 million subscribers on YouTube and 4.2 million followers on Instagram, target first-time voters, while BarelyOpinionated, a digital media company with 1.81 lakh followers on Instagram, has made reels about EC’s Know Your Candidate and CVigil apps.

Voter education messages on Swiggy, Zomato and Spotify have also been rolled out. Spotify launched in-app messaging last week to give users relevant information. In a statement, Spotify said the app also has two playlists – Play Your Part India and Thank You For Voting – which have motivational songs and a “mix of patriotic and fun dance tracks”.