German Foreign Minister met with Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel . CEC Rajiv Kumar said that the idea of democracy is deeply embedded in Indias cultural context and traditions .
New Delhi, India, December 6: On Tuesday, the German Foreign Minister and her Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, met with Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel at Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi.The German Foreign Minister was accompanied by four Members of Parliament and other members of her Foreign Office, according to a press release released by the Election Commission of India (ECI).CEC Rajiv Kumar said that the idea of democracy is deeply embedded in India's cultural context and traditions.He briefed the German delegation of the extensive investigation that ECI performs for over 950 million voters at 1.1 million polling stations, co-opting 11 million Polling Staff, to ensure that democratic elections are run smoothly, fair, inclusive, transparent, and participative.
Given the challenges faced by a diverse geography, culture, and electorate in India, he appreciated the vast task of ECI's electoral management.At a demonstration of EVM-VVPAT functionality organized by ECI for the delegation, the Minister was informed of the widespread use of technology by ECI in the conduct of elections, which broadly fall under three verticals: voter registration, political parties, and electoral machinery logistics.The MPs and India also praised the robust safety characteristics of standalone EVMs, as well as tight organizational protocols on handling, movement, storage, operations, and the procedure for participation of political parties at every stage of EVMs' activities, according to the press release.The second international conference on Technology and Elections Integrity will be held in January 2023, under the supervision of Summit for Democracy.