New Delhi, September 19: The Election Commission has launched a mobile application for voters to lodge complaints of the violation of the model code of conduct during polls. The cVigil (Vigilant Citizen) mobile app will be used for the first time during the Assembly Elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram and Telangana, which are likely to take place in November-December this year.

Through the cVigil app, any person can report about a poll code violation by any candidate or political party, Chief Election Commissioner OP Rawat said on Tuesday. Here's all about the cVigil app and how it will work.

Rawat, while addressing the media in Jaipur on Tuesday, also said that polling in all 200 constituencies in the upcoming Rajasthan Assembly Elections 2018 would be conducted through Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) and EVM M-3 machines. The machines will be used at 51,796 polling booths across the state. The 'M3'-type EVMs are equipped with a self-diagnostic system for authentication of the genuineness of the machines.

What is cVigil App?

The cVigil mobile app was launched by the Election Commission in July this year. Available on Android, the app will be operational only where elections are announced.

The app allows citizens in election-bound states to report violations of Model Code of Conduct that comes into effect from the date of announcement of elections and goes on till a day after the polls. Citizens can click a picture or record a video of up to two minutes’ duration of the scene of violations of the model code. The photo or video is to be uploaded on the app.

The automated location mapping will be done by the app using the Geographic Information System. After its successful submission through the app, the vigilant citizen gets a Unique ID to track and receive the follow-up updates on her or his mobile.

The identity of the complainant is kept confidential. If the incident is found correct, the information is sent to the National Grievance Portal of the Election Commission of India for further action and the complainant is informed about the action taken within a hundred minutes.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 19, 2018 03:33 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).