How Big is India’s 2024 Election?
Source: ECI
GS II: Parliament and State Legislatures – structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these
Overview
- News in Brief
- How Big is India’s 2024 Election?
- How Indian Government forming?
Why in the News?
Election Commission of India, the country’s independent poll-conducting body announced, Lok Sabha elections will be held in seven phases from April 19.
- The results will be announced on June 4.
News in Brief
- The first phase will be held on April 19, the second phase on April 26, the third phase on May 7, the fourth phase on May 13, the fifth phase on May 20, the sixth phase on May 25, and the seventh phase on June 1.
- The election process that started on Saturday will continue for 82 days until results are announced on June 4.
- With the announcement of the schedule, a model code of conduct also kicks in.
How Big is India’s 2024 Election?
- 96.8 crore electors registered voters
- 10.5 lah polling stations
- 1.5 crore polling officials and security staff
- 55 lakhs EVMs
- 4 lakh vehicles
- 19.47 crore voters between the age group of 20-29 years
- 1.8 crore first-time voters added
- Gender in Election
- 12 states the ratio of women voters is higher than that of male voters
- Total electors include 49.7 crore males, 47.1 crore females, 48,000 transgenders
- 85 lakh 1st-time women voters
- 82 lakh voters are above 85 years, 2.18 lakh centenarians
- Vote-from-home
- Election Commission announced facilities for citizens above 85 years old and persons with disabilities for the Lok Sabha elections.
- This is the first time the poll body providing vote-from-home.
- Multiphased Election
- Deployment of huge federal security forces required.
- To check everything from polling-related violence or attempts at rigging
- Election Expense
- It is expected to be the world’s most expensive election.
- Spending by political parties and candidates to woo voters will likely cost more than 1.2 trillion rupees ($14.4bn).
- Twice what was spent in India’s 2019 elections – 600 billion rupees ($7.2bn).
- Extend of Polling booth
- Election workers travelled 300 miles (482 km) over four days.
- One million polling stations.
- Political Part
- India has about 2,660 registered political parties.
- Seven national parties, 43 state parties and 623 unrecognised political parties participated in the 2024 elections.
- Number of Candidate
- 8,054 candidates, including 3,461 independents, contested those elections.
- 543 winning candidates, 397 were from national parties, 136 were from state parties, six were from unrecognised parties and four were independent.
How Indian Government forming?
- The formation of the Indian government is a complex process rooted in the principles of democracy outlined in the Constitution of India.
- India operates under a parliamentary system of government, which means that the executive branch is accountable to the legislative branch.
Detailed overview of how the Indian government is formed
- General Elections: The foundation of the Indian government lies in general elections held at regular intervals. The Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India, is directly elected by the people through universal adult suffrage. Members of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house, are elected by the elected members of State Legislative Assemblies.
- Formation of the Lok Sabha: The Lok Sabha consists of a total of 545 members, out of which 543 are directly elected from single-member constituencies and two are nominated by the President of India from the Anglo-Indian community if it is felt that they are not adequately represented. The political party or coalition that secures a majority of seats in the Lok Sabha forms the government.
- Council of States Rajya Sabha: The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body and is not subject to dissolution like the Lok Sabha. It consists of a maximum of 250 members, of which 238 members are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States and Union territories. The remaining 12 members are nominated by the President of India for their contributions to art, literature, science, and social services. The term of a member of the Rajya Sabha is six years. One-third of its members retire every two years.
- Appointment of the Prime Minister: The leader of the majority party or coalition in the Lok Sabha is appointed as the Prime Minister of India by the President. The Prime Minister then selects ministers to form the Council of Ministers.
- Council of Ministers: The Council of Ministers, headed by the Prime Minister, is responsible for administering various government functions. Ministers are appointed to head different ministries, each responsible for specific areas of governance such as finance, defence, external affairs, etc.
- Role of the President: While the President of India is the head of state, their role in the formation of the government is largely ceremonial. The President appoints the Prime Minister and other ministers on the advice of the Prime Minister. The President also has the power to dissolve the Lok Sabha and call for fresh elections.
- Functioning of the Government: The government functions through the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The executive branch implements laws, the legislative branch enacts laws, and the judicial branch interprets laws. The Parliament, comprising the President and the two houses, plays a crucial role in the legislative process.
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