The Maharashtra government’s Shakti Criminal Laws (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill, 2020, on crimes against women and children has recommended capital punishment in rape cases.
Why have stringent laws have consistently failed to instill any fear in rapists? Discuss.
Shakti Act: Key Provisions
Capital punishment: It proposes stringent punishment including the death penalty and heavy fines for the culprits.
Fast-track trial: Special police teams and separate courts will be set up for investigation and trial of cases against women and children.
Jail term: The perpetrators if found guilty will be punished with imprisonment for life for not less than ten years but may extend to the remainder of natural life or with death in cases which have characteristics of being heinous in nature.
Compensation: A sum of Rs 10 lakh will be given to an acid attack victim for plastic surgery and facial reconstruction and the amount will be collected as fine from the convict.
Rapid investigation: The investigation shall be completed within a period of 15 working days from the date of registration of an offence. This can be extended by 7 days.
In-camera investigation: Some cases will be tried in-camera for the recording of evidence of victims and witnesses who are vulnerable.
Why in news?
(1) Covering acid-attacks
Politicians in Maharashtra have recommended increasing the quantum of punishment for acid attack cases under section 326A of IPC to at least 15 years that may extend to the remainder of a convict’s natural life.
The expenditure of plastic surgery and face reconstruction operations for the victim will be taken care of from the monetary fine to be charged on the accused.
(2) Social media accountability
The panel has also increased the punishment under the IPC section 175A for failure to share data for probe by social media platforms, internet providers.
Also, under Pocso Act, the data must be within three days at the pain of penalty.
(3) Curb on false complaints
Punishment will be increased for false complaints and for giving wrong information to a public servant.
The provisions under the bill are being made more stringent to punish the culprits and set deterrence.
However, it is also necessary that the innocent are saved and so severe punishment is required against people filing false or wrongful complaints.
The committee has also scrapped the provision of not giving anticipatory bail to people making wrongful or false complaints.
(4) Covering trans-persons
Under section 354E, which provides for punishment for any act of intimidating woman and insulting her modesty, the category of offenders has been increased to cover men, women and even transgender persons.
Limitations of stringent laws
Despite several laws, incidences of rapes continue unabated.
In fact, now we hear cases of extreme brutality.
The general perception is that since the laws have been made more stringent, so the rapists resort to extreme measures in a bid to destroy the evidence.
Way forward
What we need is better policing, making public spaces safer for women, ensuring round-the-clock surveillance of isolated areas, and deployment of police at all strategic points.
Prevention and not punishment is the solution and that requires concerted efforts on part of all the stakeholders.
It is not harsher punishments that will deter. It is the fear of being caught and not being spared.
Why has Civilsdaily Student and Aspiring UPSC 2022 Civil Servant, Ashish Renewed his Program for One More Year With Us?
“Unlike other students in my batch, Ashish has been a dedicated and hardworking UPSC aspirant even before joining us. Since he is unable to prepare for UPSC fulltime, he compensates by studying for 6-7 hours everyday after he completes his work as a bank officer. He is always able to complete the weekly targets assigned to him 2-3 days in advance.”, says Ashish’s Civilsdaily Mentor Pravin sir as he sets the tone of our interview. Pravin sir has been mentoring Ashish for more than a year. Satisfied with his guidance, Ashish has upgraded his program once again for 2022 prelims.
Ashish had started his UPSC-CSE preparation in March 2020. For 6 months, he prepared without comprehending what was written in the books. He followed random videos on Youtube for a topic he didn’t understand and read all the pages of many books recommended by different toppers. Ashish struggled to study a topic concisely. He did not know what was the relevant information he had to gather for a topic. Hence, though he studied hard he was unable to score well in test series. As a result of which, Ashish in his first Civilsdaily Mains Test was able to score only 50 marks out of 250 and 40 out of 200 marks in prelims.
Challenges of Ashish When He Studied Without Mentorship
By July 2020, Ashish decided he cannot waste anymore time and wanted a personal mentor for his UPSC-CSE preparation. He knew he had no time to attend coaching classes so he was particular about the kind of mentor he preferred. Ashish wanted a mentor who could help him minimize his study materials, guide him on how he could judiciously utilize the available time for preparation and set weekly targets for him. “I wanted to do the studying by myself, it’s not classes that I wanted. I wanted someone with whom I can develop micro and macro study plans, someone who evaluates test series frequently and assesses my performance. Someone who motivates me to stay focused when I feel like taking long breaks.” This on surface, might appear as trivial requirements, but let’s not forget that on a daily basis many aspirants grapple with motivation, consistency and time-management issues.
Ashish was unable to find the right mentor till he approached Civilsdaily. ” I was a regular reader of the current affairs compilation at Civilsdaily. That’s when I thought of enrolling in its mentorship program as well.” Under it’s mentorship program, Pravin sir has analyzed the previous year questions from year 1994 onwards for every topic in the syllabus. He will then suggest which book or online source Ashish can read for a particular topic. This way, Ashish is able to read about 2-3 books per subject, but not waste time by reading every page of those books.
Pravin Sir, Civilsdaily Mentor and Two-Time UPSC CSE Interview Aspirant
“To give an example, I asked Ashish to read Ramesh Singh for Fundamentals of Economy but for certain key concepts I asked him to read only from Shankar Ganesh.”, Pravin sir says and continues, “If there is any current affairs in Samachar Manthan that corresponds to what Ashish is reading this week, I will bring it to his notice.” Pravin sir conducts weekly counselling session where Ashish is free to discuss anything that bothers him personally even if it’s not related to his studies. Every aspirant has had those days when it’s been hard to just study. It happens to the best of us sometimes and for some of us, it happens more frequently. And it is understandable, Civil Service preparation is a long and often lonely process. Every aspirant, from toppers to those who have quit have been overwhelmed by this process at some point in time. Working alone is monotonous and that’s why regular counselling is required. “I believe that during this tough preparation phase, an aspirant is vulnerable to the smallest of the negative distractions. Counselling helps them stay on track and not react to anything going around them in an impulsive manner.” Pravin sir has also included all his students in the Habitat Club where he posts inspirational quotes and invites everyone for a weekly zoom session to conduct live answer writing practice sessions. “I conduct this zoom session right before and after the weekly prelims and mains test series. I feel its important for everyone in a group to discuss and debate on how they can improve an answer for a question. Over here, I also show the answer writing copies of other UPSC toppers”
When Ashish first wrote the test series, he had a problem of writing vague points which were not backed by relevant factual data. He also did not give current affairs examples of the points he discussed in his answers.
By November 2020, Ashish learnt how to improve the presentation of his answers by writing shorter points and backing it up with examples wherever necessary. He also highlighted sub-headings as boxes to get the attention of the examiner. However, while concluding, he still made vague points and did not offer solutions to the issues.
In the recent test series conducted on December 9 2021, Ashish improved his answer writing in terms of presentation, valid specific points and solutions, examples and statistics. However, he missed on giving an introduction that could have fetched him 1-2 marks extra by mentioning about the recent cryptocurrency bill.
Right now, Ashish is able to score 105 in advanced prelims test series, 120 in basic prelims test series and 100 out of 250 in advanced mains test series. “I feel reassured when I get timely support from Pravin sir and always look forward to our weekly interactions when I can inform him I completed the modules of the week.” When asked about one particular instance of mentorship that he cherishes, Ashish says, “I did not understand parliamentary committee topic once. Pravin sir was on call with me for half an hour and explained the whole topic till I understood. I really appreciate that from his end.” Ashish told us that Pravin sir directs him to the right videos and sources when he is unable to get conceptual clarity. “This often happens to me when I am reading any topic in international relations. Because of Pravin sir’s support, I am able to understand a topic in lesser time.” Due to the weekly topic wise prelims and mains test series, Ashish has improved his speed and accuracy to a large extent. “While before, I used to take 15-20 minutes to write an answer, now I am able to do so within 10 minutes.”
Get Your First 30 Min Counselling session By a Mentor for Free
At the core of Samanvaya lies the fact that each one of you will have a unique journey while preparing for the exam. Some will get through on the first attempt without much effort while others will take both more time and more effort.
We want to understand you better to help you optimize your journey so you can focus on the right things and not waste time on the wrong ones. We are asking you to tap into the valuable experiences of mentors who underwent the same grind and realize the pitfalls and understand the shortcuts to make it.
In the first counselling session, we will understand your weaknesses. Over 80% of students who claimed to have revised NCERTs twice were unable to answer basic questions. Many were not comfortable with at least 1 GS subject and Optional. Many struggled with ‘What went wrong’ after 2-3 years of hard work. Our mentors will provide free preliminary assignments so that we can assess your preparedness and suggest accurate strategies. We then help you to stick to one plan or strategy throughout your preparation.
Samanvaya Code of Conduct to be followed
However, before you fill the form and get your first 30 minute counselling with us for free, please keep in mind the following —
Be honest with your mentors about your preparation levels and stage.
Follow their advice and participate in tests and assignments that they set for you
Stay active in the telegram groups, ask doubts, don’t hold yourself back.
Don’t expect spoonfeeding. You have to drive the initiative.
Recently, the National Energy Conservation Day was observed on December 14th by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE).
UN Statistics on Energy
13% global population lacks access to electricity
3 billion people rely on wood, coal, waste for cooking and heating
Energy dominant contributor for climate change
Energy needs account for 60% of global greenhouse gas emissions
What is Energy Conservation?
Energy conservation is a conscious, individual effort, and at a macro level, it leads to energy efficiency (most precisely Electrical Energy).
It involves the effort made to ensure that energy is used efficiently by either using less energy or reducing the use for a particular constant purpose.
The end goal of energy conservation is to reach towards sustainable energy.
It is different from the term ‘energy efficiency’, which is using technology that requires less energy to perform the same function.
Energy scenario in India
India is the third-largest electricity producer in the world. Thermal, nuclear, and renewable energy systems are the major sources for generating India’s electricity.
Installed power generation capacities include:
Thermal: 60% (234.69 GW)
Nuclear: 2% (6.78 GW)
Renewable Energy: 38% (150.54 GW)
The overall capacity of about 392 GW is added into its electricity grid, as of November 2021. Perhaps this is insufficient to meets its total demand.
Various govt. initiatives
[1] Energy Conservation Act, 2001
Considering the vast potential of energy savings and benefits of energy efficiency, the GoI enacted the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
The Act provides for the legal framework, institutional arrangement and a regulatory mechanism at the Central and State level to embark upon energy efficiency drive in the country.
Five major provisions of EC Act relate to:
Designated Consumers
Standard and Labeling of Appliances
Energy Conservation Building Codes
Creation of Institutional setup i.e. Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)
Establishment of Energy Conservation Fund
[2] National Programme for LED-based Home and Street Lighting
The initiative is part of the Government’s efforts to spread the message of energy efficiency in the country.
LED bulbs have a very long life, almost 50 times more than ordinary bulbs, and 8-10 times that of CFLs, and therefore provide both energy and cost savings in the medium term.
Under this scheme, Government aims to replace 3.5 crore conventional street lights with energy efficient LED lights.
[3] Standards and Labelling Programme
Standards and Labelling (S&L) programme has been identified as one of the key activities for energy efficiency improvements. The scheme was launched on 18th May 2006
Key objective of the scheme is to provide the consumer an informed choice about the energy saving and thereby the cost saving potential of the relevant marketed product.
[4] Energy Conservation Building Codes (ECBC)
The ECBC was launched by Ministry of Power for new commercial buildings in 2007. It sets minimum energy standards for new commercial buildings.
In order to promote a market pull for energy efficient buildings, the BEE developed a voluntary Star Rating Programme for buildings which are based on the actual performance of a building.
[5] UJALA scheme
UJALA scheme aims to promote efficient use of energy at the residential level, enhance the awareness of consumers about the efficacy of using energy efficient appliances.
It facilitates higher uptake of LED lights by residential users.
It may be noted that the scheme was initially labelled DELP (Domestic Efficient Lighting Program) and was re-launched as UJALA.
[6] School Education Program
Considering the need to make the next generation more aware regarding efficient use of energy resources, it is necessary to introduce children during their school education.
In this regard, promotion of energy efficiency in schools is being promoted through the establishment of Energy Clubs.
BEE has prepared the text/material on Energy Efficiency and Conservation for its proposed incorporation in the existing science syllabi and science text books of NCERT for classes 6th to 10th.
Way forward
Universal Access: There must be universal access to affordable energy with effective intervention by the government.
Awareness: More awareness programmes regarding green buildings should be held as there is a rapid expansion of urbanization.
Investments: More investments in energy-efficient infrastructure are required.
Storage: Li-ion batteries can be promoted and deployed with measures to manufacture indigenous lithium-ion batteries.
Clean Energy: A stable supply chain of renewable energy and cleaner fossil fuel technologies must emerge in order to achieve the ambitious energy targets.
Conclusion
India has taken strong strides on its clean energy transition.
While India’s energy needs are expected to grow, energy efficiency can help meet them cost-effectively while leaving a better environment for the next generation.
The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill that seeks to link the electoral rolls with the Aadhaar database has been passed by both the Houses of the parliament.
Three electoral reforms
A wide range of electoral reform proposals has been pending with the government, several of them for over two decades.
The three reforms — common electoral rolls for Vidhan Sabha and panchayat elections, extending the qualifying date for registration of young new voters, and linking of Aadhaar with electoral rolls — taken up by the Union Cabinet on December 15 are, therefore, significant.
[1] Common electoral rolls
For years, the ECI has been advocating a common electoral roll for all elections.
Currently, separate electoral rolls are maintained for elections to the Lok Sabha, Vidhan Sabha and local government bodies (panchayats or municipal).
Role of ECI and SECs: There are two types of election management bodies in the country — the ECI that conducts the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections and SECs that conduct panchayat and municipal elections.
The process for making electoral rolls is laid down in the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
The SECs have the option of either adopting the electoral rolls created by the ECI or preparing such rolls on their own.
Most prefer to use the rolls prepared by the ECI.
Some states, however, develop their rolls independently.
These are Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Odisha, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Considering that a voter for all three tiers of elected bodies is the same, why is it that she finds her name missing from one of the rolls, mostly the panchayat rolls?
This is particularly surprising when the officials responsible for making both these rolls are the same.
A common electoral roll is thus a logical solution.
Benefits of common electoral rolls
Tackling stuffing voters: A common experience has been the stuffing of bogus voters in the panchayat/municipal rolls.
Corrupt practices are proportionately higher in PRI polls.
Avoid the involvement of teachers in the non-teaching work: The process of making electoral rolls is usually done by the schoolteachers.
Their involvement in non-teaching work takes its toll.
Cost-saving: A common electoral roll will obviate the need for deploying them repeatedly, besides saving enormous costs.
Suggestions for preparation of common electoral rolls
Issue joint instructions: The ECI and SECs can issue joint instructions for preparing the common rolls. The roll-making machinery stays the same.
Pilot studies may be conducted in random constituencies to identify the discrepancies between two sets of rolls and their reasons.
What are the constitutional and legal changes required?
Amendment in Article 243K and 243ZA: The SECs derive their powers to supervise local body elections from Articles 243K and 243ZA of the Constitution.
Changes in State laws: All state governments would have to change their electoral laws to adopt ECI electoral rolls for local elections.
[2] Eligibility date of new voters
According to Section 14(b) of the Representation of People Act of 1950, only those who have turned 18 on or before January 1 of the year are to be registered.
This implies that all those who turn 18 between January 2 and December 31 of a year must wait till the next year.
This technicality results in the exclusion of a large section of 18-year-olds.
Suggestion by ECI on eligibility date
The ECI had sent a letter to the Law Ministry on November 4, 2013, which recommended the issuing of a voter card to an individual ideally on their 18th birthday, or updating voter rolls every month or quarter.
A committee of the Ministry of Law and Justice under Sushil Kumar Modi has proposed quarterly cut-off dates for voter registration — January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1.
[3] Aadhar linking
The proposal to link electoral rolls with Aadhaar was first mooted by the ECI in 2015 but work on it had to be stopped when the Supreme Court ruled that Aadhaar cannot be used except voluntarily for beneficiary-oriented schemes.
Benefits of linking: The linking will help in identifying duplicate voters, something that ECI has been desperately attempting for years using various “de-duplication” software with limited success.
Consider the question “What are the concerns with linking of Aadhar and electoral rolls? Suggest the way forward.”
Conclusion
Any progress in addressing the vexed issue of electoral reform — even in a piecemeal manner — is welcome. The time has, however, come for the government to consider the 40-plus pending proposals, instead of selectively going for some reforms.
Complete Prelims & Mains Booklist to cover the vast syllabus of UPSC-CSE on time? || by Pravin Sir & Ravi Sir Date & Time: Dec 23, 2021 @07:00 PM (Log in start @06:45 PM) India
If there’s one aspect of UPSC-CSE preparation that all aspirants struggle equally, then it’s the vast syllabus. There’s no other qualifying exam in India where you would be asked questions from all the subjects (From Science to Ethics, From Polity to Geography) like UPSC-CSE.
Many aspirants get confused when they see many toppers and institutes recommend different books for the same subject. They end up reading all of them. And before they know, there’s only 3 more months for the exam while they have only completed 3 subjects.
Open to All, Free to Attend Live Webinar with Pravin sir & Ravi sir
Do you know that there is a difference between referring a book for a few topics v/s reading the entire book?
And that’s why it appears as if toppers are superhumans who can read nearly 3000-4000 pages for a subject within a month. The reality is however far from true. There are certain books like Pax Indica and Norman Lowe’s World History where only 200-300 pages are meant to be read for UPSC-CSE. An aspirant who doesn’t know this will end up reading the entire 1000 pages!
This coming Thursday, our Civilsdaily mentorsPravin sir & Ravi sir will take time off their busy schedule to share the all encompassing booklist for Prelims and Mains. This booklist has been curated keeping in mind a span of one year with 6-7 hours of studies per day. They will also suggest the best approach to study and understand a particular topic and additional sources to refer (apart from your standard books). They also highlight the PYQs of this topic.
In UPSC-CSE 2020 prelims exam, every 3rd ranker in the top 100 was a Civilsdaily student. Our toppers have time and again mentioned that they found our consolidated booklist useful for preparation.
Key-Takeaways of Free Live Webinar by Pravin sir & Ravi sir
1. What is the best book to refer for a topic in a subject? Based on 6 year paper analysis of UPSC-CSE.
2. What are the common books for both Prelims & Mains. And what are the prelims-specific and mains-specific sources?
3. Ancient & Medieval History is becoming tougher every year. What is the best book you can refer for both?
4. Online sources for UPSC-CSE. What are the subject-wise committee reports you need to read for the exam?
5. Only two consolidated sources for Current Affairs. What are they?
Webinar Details
If you want to get the nuances of UPSC-CSE preparation right in the first go, then this free webinar is for you! Just fill the form and let us know the question you want to ask Pravin and Ravi sir in the one hour long session on Thursday.
If there’s one aspect of UPSC-CSE preparation that all aspirants struggle equally, then it’s the vast syllabus. There’s no other qualifying exam in India where you would be asked questions from all the subjects (From Science to Ethics, From Polity to Geography) like UPSC-CSE.
Many aspirants get confused when they see many toppers and institutes recommend different books for the same subject. They end up reading all of them. And before they know, there’s only 3 more months for the exam while they have only completed 3 subjects.
Open to All, Free to Attend Live Webinar with Pravin sir & Ravi sir
Do you know that there is a difference between referring a book for a few topics v/s reading the entire book?
And that’s why it appears as if toppers are superhumans who can read nearly 3000-4000 pages for a subject within a month. The reality is however far from true. There are certain books like Pax Indica and Norman Lowe’s World History where only 200-300 pages are meant to be read for UPSC-CSE. An aspirant who doesn’t know this will end up reading the entire 1000 pages!
This coming Thursday, our Civilsdaily mentorsPravin sir & Ravi sir will take time off their busy schedule to share the all encompassing booklist for Prelims and Mains. This booklist has been curated keeping in mind a span of one year with 6-7 hours of studies per day. They will also suggest the best approach to study and understand a particular topic and additional sources to refer (apart from your standard books). They also highlight the PYQs of this topic.
In UPSC-CSE 2020 prelims exam, every 3rd ranker in the top 100 was a Civilsdaily student. Our toppers have time and again mentioned that they found our consolidated booklist useful for preparation.
Key-Takeaways of Free Live Webinar by Pravin sir & Ravi sir
1. What is the best book to refer for a topic in a subject? Based on 6 year paper analysis of UPSC-CSE.
2. What are the common books for both Prelims & Mains. And what are the prelims-specific and mains-specific sources?
3. Ancient & Medieval History is becoming tougher every year. What is the best book you can refer for both?
4. Online sources for UPSC-CSE. What are the subject-wise committee reports you need to read for the exam?
5. Only two consolidated sources for Current Affairs. What are they?
Webinar Details
If you want to get the nuances of UPSC-CSE preparation right in the first go, then this free webinar is for you! Just fill the form and let us know the question you want to ask Pravin and Ravi sir in the one hour long session on Thursday.
If there’s one aspect of UPSC-CSE preparation that all aspirants struggle equally, then it’s the vast syllabus. There’s no other qualifying exam in India where you would be asked questions from all the subjects (From Science to Ethics, From Polity to Geography) like UPSC-CSE.
Many aspirants get confused when they see many toppers and institutes recommend different books for the same subject. They end up reading all of them. And before they know, there’s only 3 more months for the exam while they have only completed 3 subjects.
Open to All, Free to Attend Live Webinar with Pravin sir & Ravi sir
Do you know that there is a difference between referring a book for a few topics v/s reading the entire book?
And that’s why it appears as if toppers are superhumans who can read nearly 3000-4000 pages for a subject within a month. The reality is however far from true. There are certain books like Pax Indica and Norman Lowe’s World History where only 200-300 pages are meant to be read for UPSC-CSE. An aspirant who doesn’t know this will end up reading the entire 1000 pages!
This coming Thursday, our Civilsdaily mentorsPravin sir & Ravi sir will take time off their busy schedule to share the all encompassing booklist for Prelims and Mains. This booklist has been curated keeping in mind a span of one year with 6-7 hours of studies per day. They will also suggest the best approach to study and understand a particular topic and additional sources to refer (apart from your standard books). They also highlight the PYQs of this topic.
In UPSC-CSE 2020 prelims exam, every 3rd ranker in the top 100 was a Civilsdaily student. Our toppers have time and again mentioned that they found our consolidated booklist useful for preparation.
Key-Takeaways of Free Live Webinar by Pravin sir & Ravi sir
1. What is the best book to refer for a topic in a subject? Based on 6 year paper analysis of UPSC-CSE.
2. What are the common books for both Prelims & Mains. And what are the prelims-specific and mains-specific sources?
3. Ancient & Medieval History is becoming tougher every year. What is the best book you can refer for both?
4. Online sources for UPSC-CSE. What are the subject-wise committee reports you need to read for the exam?
5. Only two consolidated sources for Current Affairs. What are they?
Webinar Details
If you want to get the nuances of UPSC-CSE preparation right in the first go, then this free webinar is for you! Just fill the form and let us know the question you want to ask Pravin and Ravi sir in the one hour long session on Thursday.
The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was passed in the Lok Sabha recently. It seeks to link electoral rolls with the Aadhaar ecosystem.
What are the concerns with linking of Aadhar with electoral roll?
[1] Aadhar is not proof of citizenship
Aadhaar is not meant to be a citizenship proof but only a digital identity for all residents.
Residence of 182 days can make even a non-citizen eligible for an Aadhaar ID.
[2] Aadhar is not address proof
According to public statements by several government functionaries, Aadhaar was only meant to be identity proof but not address proof.
Electoral roll is based on Aadhar: In contrast, the RER clearly stipulates address to be a key index for electoral rolls.
Different enrollment process: Moreover, the enrolment processes for voters’ lists and Aadhaar are completely different.
Whereas Aadhaar enrolment is based on production of existing documents and the “introducer system”, voter enrolments involve physical verification and “house visits” by a registration officer or representative.
[3] No audit report on the efficacy of Aadhaar deduplication or on the authenticity of the Aadhaar database
Even the Supreme Court accepted the Unique Identification Authority of India’s (UIDAI) claims on the integrity of the Aadhaar database at face value without any scrutiny.
Risk of exclusion error: Using Aadhaar to clean the electoral rolls involved the risk of disenfranchisement, especially of the marginalised communities.
It is to be noted that there is ample publicly documented evidence of large-scale exclusion in PDS and welfare disbursal due to Aadhaar.
[4] Conflict of interest
UIDAI is under government control: Maintenance of the voters’ lists is a primary responsibility of the ECI, which is an independent constitutional body, whereas Aadhaar is a government instrument and UIDAI is under government control.
Since the ECI has no control on either enrolment or deduplication in Aadhaar, it appears inappropriate — and a potential conflict of interest — to use Aadhaar for electoral rolls.
In particular, since Aadhaar is directly used for disbursal of welfare and direct benefit transfers, linking it with voter ID may provide a direct method for the government to influence and manipulate voters.
[5] Risk of profiling and targeting of voters
Aadhaar is a ubiquitous ID that is used in a variety of applications.
Linking it with the voter ID will open up avenues for profiling and targeting of voters.
No audit for purpose limitation: This is of particular concern because neither the UIDAI nor the ECI have publicly audited architectures for purpose limitation and protection against insider attacks.
While profiling using public data is not illegal according to current laws, both the electorate and Parliament need to clearly understand the risks of such profiling.
It is far easier to win elections through digital analysis of electoral rolls than through attacking the electronic voting process, especially when election results are available at booth-level granularity
Both privacy and integrity of the electoral rolls are of paramount importance in the digital age, and the clear tension between the two makes the problem challenging.
Way forward
Use of cryptography: The RER of 1960 clearly opted for transparency as a means to the integrity of the electoral rolls, thereby ensuring that all additions and deletions can be publicly audited.
However, with the possibility of digital processing of electoral data, the risks associated with such complete transparency have increased manifold.
Yet, there are several modern techniques from cryptography and computer science that may help mitigate the risks by enabling both privacy and public auditability.
Consider the question “The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 enable the linking of electoral rolls with the Aadhaar ecosystem. What are the objectives of such linking and concerns raised against it?”
Conclusion
An electoral reforms bill at the onset of 2022 needed to explore and address these issues head-on.
