CEC Gyanesh Kumar Calls Students Future of Indian Democracy

• ECI organised its second regional conference on Electoral Literacy Clubs 2.0 and ECINET in Lucknow.
• CEC Gyanesh Kumar urged students and young voters to understand electoral processes and democratic values.
• ELC 2.0 will create digitally enabled electoral literacy platforms across educational institutions.
• ECINET will provide a dedicated digital platform for coordinating ELC activities nationwide.

GG News Bureau
Lucknow, 24th Aug: Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Monday described students as the future of the world’s largest democracy and called for greater electoral awareness among young citizens.

He was addressing the second regional conference on “Electoral Literacy Clubs (ELC 2.0) and ECINET”, organised by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in Lucknow. The conference brought together students and teachers from schools and colleges across Uttar Pradesh to promote electoral literacy and democratic awareness.

Kumar said Electoral Literacy Clubs are essential for passing knowledge and understanding of electoral processes to the next generation and strengthening democratic participation.

He emphasised that elections in India are conducted in accordance with the Constitution, laws and instructions issued by the ECI. He said the electoral process is conducted transparently and is subject to concurrent scrutiny by political parties, candidates and their representatives at different stages.

The CEC stressed the need for students and young electors to understand India’s electoral system, democratic values, voter registration, polling and counting processes, as well as the role and functioning of the Election Commission.

ELC 2.0 to promote informed participation
The ELC 2.0 initiative carries the tagline “Learn Democracy. Lead Democracy.” It seeks to encourage young and first-time voters not only to understand democratic processes but also to participate meaningfully in them.

Kumar said informed participation and trust among young citizens represent an investment in the future of democracy.

Under ELC 2.0, Electoral Literacy Clubs are being reimagined as structured, visible and digitally enabled platforms across schools, colleges and universities. The initiative envisages year-round activities to promote electoral awareness among students, their families and wider communities.

ECINET to support nationwide network
The initiative will leverage the ECINET digital platform, which provides election-related services ranging from electoral rolls to polling. A dedicated ELC portal on ECINET will facilitate the development of a streamlined pan-India network of Electoral Literacy Clubs.

The ECI said the initiative assumes significance given India’s extensive educational ecosystem, comprising approximately 15 lakh schools, nearly 25 crore students and more than one crore teachers. The higher education sector includes around 1,500 universities and 70,000 educational institutions, with an estimated enrolment of 4.33 crore students.

Through this network, ELC 2.0 aims to provide factual and experiential electoral education and improve awareness about the transparency, integrity and credibility of India’s electoral system.

The clubs will also disseminate information on electoral registration, polling and counting, besides familiarising students with ECINET and other ECI initiatives.

Earlier in the day, CEC Gyanesh Kumar visited his alma mater, Colvin Taluqdar’s College, and interacted with teachers and students.

On the second day of his visit, Kumar is scheduled to interact with Booth Level Officers (BLOs) of Uttar Pradesh.