<span style="color: #222222;">Sikkim joined the rest of the country in celebrating National Voters' Day today.The theme of this year's event was 'Making our voters Empowered, Vigilant, Safe and Informed'. The state-level programme was observed at the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Sikkim in Gangtok. The celebration was chaired by CEO R. Telang.<br />''<br />''Mr Telang said that democracy cannot exist in the truest sense, if there is no mechanism for conducting free and fair elections. He said that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has set global standards for conducting elections. He cited the recent Bihar Assembly elections at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic to portray the effectiveness of the ECI.<br />''<br />'' He also highlighted the campaign initiated by the office of the CEO, Sikkim, 'Reaching the Unreached' wherein Child Care Institutions, Old-Age homes, Sikkim Spastic Society and Detoxification Centres were sensitized about the electoral process.<br />''<br />''The CEO also informed that during the 2019 elections, the state steering committee had put forth the suggestion to the ECI for allowing postal ballots for the differently abled people which is a reality today. Along with differently abled voters, voters above the age of 80 would also be entitled to cast their votes through postal ballots.<br />''<br />''The occasion was also celebrated in Gyalsingh and Namchi.</span><br />