Barcodes in Elections

 

Barcodes could add an interesting layer to India’s elections, especially if we’re talking about enhancing the current Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) system. Here’s how they might fit in, grounded in what’s practical and based on existing tech ideas:

First, barcodes could streamline voter verification. India’s voter ID cards already have QR codes in some states (e.g., EPIC cards since 2020). Scanning these at polling stations could instantly pull up voter details from the Election Commission’s database, cutting down fake votes and speeding up lines—important when 642 million voted in 2024. It’s faster than manual checks, and with 99% Aadhaar penetration, linking biometric data to barcodes could tighten security further, though privacy concerns would need tackling.

Second, barcodes on VVPAT slips could make audits more efficient. Right now, VVPATs print a paper record of each vote, and a tiny fraction (about 5 per constituency) get manually counted to cross-check EVMs. Adding a unique barcode to each slip could let machines scan and tally them against EVM data in real time, scaling up verification without slowing results—2024’s count took under a day. It’d also create a digital paper trail, harder to dispute than plain paper if fraud claims pop up.

Third, barcodes could track election materials. India moves millions of EVMs and ballots across 543 constituencies—barcodes on machines, ballot units, and supply crates could log their journey via GPS-enabled scans, flagging tampering or delays. In 2019, ₹2,600 crore in illicit goods were seized; barcoded tracking could tighten logistics and deter black money flows.

Downsides? Tech glitches or power cuts in rural areas (15% of booths in 2024 had issues) could stall scanning, and training 5 million poll workers on barcode systems would cost time and money—maybe ₹500 crore extra, rough guess based on EVM rollout costs. Plus, skeptics might still cry “hacking,” even if barcodes are just identifiers, not vote storage.

It’s not a full switch to paper ballots but a hybrid boost. Evidence from barcode use in logistics (e.g., India Post’s 99% parcel tracking success) suggests it’s reliable at scale. Could it work? Yeah, if the Election Commission tests it small first—say, in a state election like Uttar Pradesh 2027.