Just 93 NRGs registered to vote

GANDHINAGAR: Of the large number of non-resident Gujaratis (NRGs), very few will vote in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Only 93 NRGs have registered as NRI voters in various districts of the state.
Officials say the major factor for this minuscule number of NRG voters is the lack of awareness among voters, as they have travel to their respective area to vote.
Gujarat chief electoral officer (CEO) S Murali Krishna said, “In 2014, there were 11 voters registered as overseas voters.In 2017, this number was 64 and it has now increased to 93. Compared to the number of people from Gujarat living abroad, 93 registered overseas voters is very low.”
“The main reason for such low numbers is that overseas voters have to come to the constituency as there is no system in place for online voting or postal ballots. NRIs voters don’t get Electoral Photo Identity Cards (EPICs), however, they can vote on the basis of their passport,” he added.
A senior officer in the CEO’s office said, “Many NRGs, although living abroad, have not cancelled their voter registrations and have EPICs. They also do not register as NRG/NRI voters and use the EPIC to vote. So it becomes difficult to properly record the number of NRG voters.”
Lack of awareness about the procedure involved is also a key reason for the small number of NRI voters. Many NRIs who hold Indian passports also hold election cards, so whenever they are in Gujarat they prefer to vote as ordinary voters.