A new tool that helps monitor seizures made during elections

March 20, 2024 09:30 pm | Updated 09:30 pm IST - Visakhapatnam

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has, for the first time, rolled out the Election Seizure Management System (ESMS) for the upcoming elections in the country, including Andhra Pradesh.

The ESMS was successfully implemented on a pilot basis in the five State Assembly elections in November last.

Sources say that many officials and people are still unaware of the system. As such, another training schedule is likely for the election staff before the issuance of election notification on April 18. This apart, awareness campaigns are also being planned.

The ESMS is a unique technology platform, where around 20 enforcement agencies, comprising departments such as the Police, Forest, banks, Transport, Income-Tax, Excise, Railways, airports and other State and Central government wings, come together to share information of their activities pertaining to elections in real time.

“The ESMS is a new system introduced for polls in Andhra Pradesh. It is a joint platform of the Central and State enforcement agencies for better coordination and intelligence-sharing to prevent duplication of data shared by individual agencies on the raids and seizure of items, including cash, liquor and drugs,” K. Mayur Ashok, Visakhapatnam Joint Collector, told The Hindu on March 20 (Wednesday).

Earlier, there were chances of duplication of data, he said. “For example, if cash is seized by an agency, more than one agency may claim the seized property. Under the ESMS, it is not possible,” he added.

Bankers should be aware of the new guidelines, he said. They should carry the special QR code if they need to travel with cash, he added.

“If the bankers are found travelling with cash without the QR code, such as cash meant for ATMs, the enforcement team will be able to tally it with the data in the ESMS, as bankers will have to enter the data in it. People need to make online transactions, or can carry cash with proper evidences,” Mr. Ashok said.

Meanwhile, the State Election Commission (SEC) officials said that the enforcement agencies had seized specified goods worth ₹3.39 crore during the raids at various levels and spots, including at 121 integrated check-posts, sinch March 16. The seized items included cash of around ₹80 lakh, liquor worth ₹1.6 crore and drugs valued at ₹29 lakh.

“This data can be accessed by the election team through the ESMS on a real-time basis,” an SEC official said on condition of anonymity.