Election Commission of India launches cVigil App: All you must know

The Election Commission of India has come up with the new ‘cVIGIL’- a Mobile App to which helps the citizens to report any violations of the election code of conduct during their tenure. The app has been designed and structured to secure the people of the nation during the election time from any misconduct and enable them to file a report instantly, without any delay.

But to go ahead with further technicality, let us understand what exactly is this app capable of doing.

What is cVigil?

The new cVIGIL app has been launched by the Election Commission of India for upgrading security and filling all the gaps by creating a fast-track complaint reception and redressal system. The app has is an innovative platform for citizens to report Model Code of Conduct and Expenditure violations during the elections. 

What does cVigil emphasize?

‘cVIGIL’ stands for Vigilant Citizen and emphasizes the proactive and responsible role of the citizens who can play in the conduct of free and fair elections.

How to operate cVigil App?

cVIGIL, is a user-friendly app and is easy to operate through any android smart device. 

The app is supportive to any Android smartphone which runs from Jellybean and above operating system. All that users need to have is an equipped camera, a decent internet connection, and GPS access. 

This app enables the citizens of India to immediately report or file an incident of political misconduct within minutes of having witnessed them, without having to rush to the office of the returning officer. 

cVIGIL connects the witnessing citizens with Returning Officer, District Control Room, and Field Unit (Flying Squads)/ Static Surveillance Teams, and helps the teams to create a rapid and accurate report towards the action, and monitoring system.

How can a user file a complaint or misconduct on the cVIGIL App?

Users can click a picture or a 2-minute video of the activity violating MCC and describe it shortly, before registering the complaint. The information captured by the user will automatically flag it to the concerned District Control Room, which will permit the flying squads to reach the concerned spot within a few minutes after filing the complaint. 

The cVIGIL will operate as follows:

Step 1

• To report a complaint, a user can click pictures or record a short video of 2-minute and upload it on the cVIGIL app. The user will share the complaint, along with an automated location mapping by the GIS (Geographic Information System)
• After successful submission, the citizen will get a Unique ID to track and receive follow-up updates on their mobile phone
• A citizen can report a number of incidents on the application and will get a unique id for each report which they file, in order to follow up later
• Users can also file a complaint anonymously through cVIGIL App. By doing this, users’ contact numbers and profile details will not be shared with the security bodies
• However, in the case of anonymous complaints, the user will not be getting further status messages because the system will not have the contact details of the sender But if a citizen wants to follow up on such complaints, they can do it in person from the concerned returning officer

Step 2

• Post the complaint being filed by the citizen, the information will beep in the District Control Room which has been assigned to a Field Unit which will consist of Flying Squads, Reserve team, Static Surveillance Team, and more
• Each Field Unit will be having a ‘cVIGIL Investigator’, a GIS-based mobile application that enables the field unit to directly reach the location by following the GIS cues and navigation technology to take action accordingly

Step 3

• Post the action taken by the Field Unit against the complaint, the field report will be sent to the concerned returning officer for decision and disposal through the ‘Investigator App’
• If the reported incident is found correct, the information will be escalated to the National Grievance Portal of the Election Commission of India for further action, and the citizen who filed the complaint will be informed about the status within 100 minutes.

How to prevent cVIGIL App from misuse?

• cVIGIL App comes with a number of inbuilt features to prevent its misuse. 
• Here are the important features to protect the app from being misused:
• cVIGIL application could be used within the geographical boundary of States only, where elections are being held.
• The app user will get 5 minutes to report an incidence post clicking the picture or a video. The app will not allow the user to upload any pre-recorded images/ videos. Nor, the app will permit the user to save photos/videos clicked from cVIGIL app.
• To avoid repetitive complaints from the same spot, the system forces 5 minutes delay between successive complaints by the same person.
• District Controller will have the option to drop duplicate, unrelated and frivolous cases, before assigning the cases to the field unit.
• The cVIGIL application has been designed to lodge MCC violation-related cases only. District Controller has the authority to drop a cVIGIL complaint without any further recourse, in case personal grievances are registered through cVIGIL app or if the digital attachment of a cVIGIL complaint is found to be unrelated to an MCC violation. Citizens are, therefore, encouraged to use the ECI main website for lodging the complaints or call at 1950.