The Indian Voter ID Card (officially the Electronic Photo Identity Card (EPIC)) is an

identity document An identity document (also called ID or colloquially as papers) is any document that may be used to prove a person's identity. If issued in a small, standard credit card size form, it is usually called an identity card (IC, ID card, citizen ca ...

issued by the

Election Commission of India The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body. It was established by the Constitution of India to conduct and regulate elections in the country. Article 324 of the Constitution provides that the power of superintendence, dir ...

to adult domiciles of India who have reached the age of 18, which primarily serves as an identity proof for Indian citizens while casting their ballot in the country's municipal, state, and national

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...

. It also serves as general identity, address, and age proof for other purposes such as buying a mobile phone

SIM card A typical SIM card (mini-SIM with micro-SIM cutout) A GSM mobile phone file:Simkarte NFC SecureElement.jpg, T-Mobile nano-SIM card with NFC capabilities in the SIM tray of an iPhone 6s file:Tf sim both sides.png, A TracFone Wireless SIM card ha ...

or applying for a

passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that contains a person's identity. A person with a passport can travel to and from foreign countries more easily and access consular assistance. A passport certifies the personal ...

. It also serves as a

Travel Document A travel document is an identity document issued by a government or international entity pursuant to international agreements to enable individuals to clear border control measures. Travel documents usually assure other governments that the be ...

to travel to

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

and

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...

by Land or Air It is also known as Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC). It was first introduced in 1993 during the tenure of the Chief Election Commissioner

T. N. Seshan Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan (15 December 1932 – 10 November 2019) was an Indian civil servant and bureaucrat who served with the Indian Administrative Service. After serving in various positions in Madras and in various ministries of the ...

Physical appearance

Initially, voter IDs were printed with black ink on regular paper and laminated. Starting in 2015, the Indian government started rolling out a less perishable PVC colour version, compliant with the

ISO/IEC 7810 ISO/IEC 7810 ''Identification cards — Physical characteristics'' is an international standard that defines the physical characteristics for identification cards. The characteristics specified include: * Physical dimensions * Resistance to ...

size standard used by most payment and ATM cards. On the front, the Elector Photo Identity Card contains the voter's name, the name of a relative they have chosen (such as their father or mother), and the voter's picture, along with the voter's ID number. On the back of the card, the voter's home address is printed, along with an image of their

Electoral Registration Officer In the United Kingdom, an electoral registration officer (ERO) is a person who has the statutory duty to compile and maintain the electoral roll (which includes conducting the annual canvass). Any expenses incurred by an electoral registration offi ...

's signature. The back also mentions the voter's

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

and their assembly constituency. The newer series also contains a 'part number', which lets voters and election officials locate voters on their

electoral roll An electoral roll (variously called an electoral register, voters roll, poll book or other description) is a compilation that lists persons who are entitled to vote for particular elections in a particular jurisdiction. The list is usually broke ...

Obtaining voter card

The voter card is issued to all Indian citizens who have attained the age of 18 years and qualify to be a voter. One has to apply on prescribed Form-6 of Election Commission attached with proof of ID, Indian nationality, age and residence. Those of "unsound mind", convicted of "corrupt practices", or offenses related to elections are ineligible to vote. Applicants have to submit paper Form-6 to their Booth Level officer (BLO) of the area. Applicants can also apply online on the website of the chief electoral officer given for that State or can directly apply to the website named National Voter Service Portal (NVSP).

New Application and Correction

Applying for Voter ID or make changes in existing Voter ID is also possible online via NVS Portal. Online process is more convenient than offline process. Correction to existing voter ID can be done via NVS Portal using EPIC number
^[17
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^[16
/nowiki>] Applicant does not have to visit the electoral office and online tracking of application status also possible. Online application process is quicker than offline process. Online ways made the process more simpler than ever

Fake and defunct voter cards

Fake voter id cards have occasionally been used fraudulently for other purposes by dubious parties and individuals to suit their personal needs.

Validity

If a person moves his/her residence to another assembly/parliamentary constituency then he/she does not remain a valid voter of the previous constituency. The person has to register afresh as voter in the new assembly constituency. Hence a new card is issued to him/her and the old card becomes invalid. Voting in India is a right, not a duty and hence the voter's identity card remains valid even after not casting ballot continuously in consecutive elections.

References