In a bid to ensure trouble-free elections in West Bengal, the Election Commission is firming up plans to use the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in this year’s Lok Sabha elections in the State.
Election Commission sources in Kolkata said the use of AI would make it possible for the poll panel to detect irregularities in sensitive booths during the poll process.
“Various AI tools will be used to monitor polling processes, analyse data, and ensure election integrity through machine learning algorithms and help us take preventive measures promptly,” a senior poll panel official told The Daily Guardian.
He explained that with the number of sensitive booths in the State running into a few thousands, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to spot and act on electoral malpractices at such booths in this year’s Lok Sabha elections would go a long way in controlling election improprieties.
“AI tools have been programmed to recognise the polling process in a booth and trigger alerts whenever it spots any discrepancy, such as an absence of poll officials or the presence of more than the usual number of people in a booth,” he added.
He explained that AI-based analyses of audio and video footage obtained from each polling station’s webcast would trigger a process of auto-selection if any sort of irregularity was noticed. This “auto-selection” would ensure early alerts to EC officials. There are also plans to keep track of queue management through AI-based webcasting.
For example, if the footage recorded any instance of commotion or high-decibel sounds in booths, these booths would get “auto-selected” by AI. Alerts would then simultaneously go out to officials at the EC’s office in Delhi, the CEO’s office in Kolkata and the District Election Officer (DEO) at the district headquarters for them to verify and act on the situation with field officers, the official added.
“Even if a voter is present in the voting compartment for a longer-than-usual period, it will trigger an alert and the voter’s facial image will be captured,”” the official said.
Polling data will also be analysed to look at discrepancies – such as more-than-usual votes cast in a very short time.
“Machine learning algorithms can also be used to analyse election data from previous elections to identify patterns that could indicate election fraud and prevent it from happening in the future. AI technology may also be used to monitor voting machines to detect any attempts at hacking or tampering,” an EC official added.
Sources said AI monitoring would be deployed at all sensitive and vulnerable booths, so that all data was properly captured, analysed and forwarded to returning officers and observers, so that proper preventive measures can be adopted.
Though Election Commission officials in Bengal were tight-lipped on the number of booths where AI would be used, they said the process for releasing a tender had begun, and that the financial proposal, along with the bidders’ presentation, would be held next week.
The webcast footage will be preserved, an official said, adding that audio and video data would be submitted to the DEO within 24 hours of polls, as per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) laid down by the Election Commission.
“The web camera should be placed in such a way to cover the maximum possible area in the polling station while ensuring the secrecy of the vote,” the official said, adding that since polling in West Bengal will be held in phases spread over more than six weeks, web cameras used in the first phase would be used in later ones.
While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) welcomed the move, the Trinamool Congress brushed away the initiative.
Samik Bhattacharya, BJP Rajya Sabha MP-elect and spokesperson said: “In the past years, the country has advanced at a rapid pace. So, the use of AI by the Election Commission is a step in the right direction. To end the misrule and exploitation by Mamata Banerjee and her henchmen like Sheikh Shahjahan, we need to harness the power of AI along with the power of the people. We are hopeful that these kinds of steps will lead to a free and fair election which West Bengal has not seen in decades.”
Trinamool Congress spokesperson Santanu Sen said: “This is just another gimmick by the BJP-controlled Election Commission. No power of AI will be able to help the BJP in West Bengal. The Trinamool Congress, under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, will sweep the elections because we have the power of the people with us.”