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New Delhi: Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) national president Jayant Choudhary is hoping to meet five lakh voters and even allow them to take selfies with him – all through a smartphone and a simple augmented reality app.
RLD on October 15 before the 2022 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh launched An augmented reality app called ‘app.loksankalp2022.com‘.
Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology that superimposes computer-generated images and sounds on the reality around us.
Chowdhury’s party wants voters to visit the link, give suggestions and feedback, on the most common issues that should be addressed in the RLD’s election manifesto for 2022.
“We represent farmers but I think it is important now to use modern technology to connect with the grassroots and strengthen the voice of farmers,” Choudhary told ThePrint.
Their coordinator Deepak Rathi told ThePrint that RLD is sending Augmented Reality app links to voters in the state through social media, WhatsApp and bulk SMS.
The app aims to reach out to five lakh voters in the state, especially in western UP, the RLD’s home region, ahead of the 2022 elections. According to Rathi, till October 20, around 1 lakh voters in UP had accessed the Augmented Reality app.
RLD’s SC/ST cell chief Prashant Kanojia told ThePrint that the app is designed for the young voters of the state.
“I have seen how our young voters are using this app and giving suggestions. This will affect the young and first-time voters who feel that there should be some kind of technology where they can communicate with our leader without the feeling of being turned away,” Kanojia said.
However, some feel that the initiative is a “gimmick”.
“It is an interesting initiative, but there is nothing new or significant in this. If I am not mistaken, a similar initiative was taken in about 2017 in a book by the BJP’s Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Dr. Raman Singh, with the back cover Scanning a QR code found on the site revealed a similar video of Dr. Raman talking about the development work done by his government in the state,” said Tushar Panchal, election strategist.
“Such initiatives serve as an interesting gimmick to write for the media; It doesn’t change the mind of the voters at all.”
Read also: ‘Opposition exposes illusion of unity’: Why BJP ensured deputy speaker in UP assembly after 14 years
how to use app
RLD technology is not a normal mobile application that you have to download on your phone. To use the app, web link app.loksankalp2022.com Must be accessed on smartphone.
The Platform first requires access to use your camera and sound system, which must allow you for the augmented reality feature to work.
Accessing the App Link for the first time displays a message that the Internet “connection is secure” and that “Your information (for example, passwords or credit card numbers) is private when sent to this site”.
Once camera and sound access is given, a logo appears at the bottom of the screen asking to touch it. Once the logo is clicked, RLD chief Choudhary appears and asks voters to share their feedback on governance issues in Hindi.
This is followed by a menu of five topics where a voter can click on the topic they think is most important to them. The five include issues related to farmers and labour, health and education, jobs and law and order.
Once a subject is clicked, a message appears thanking the user for their suggestion, along with a camera icon. When the camera icon is clicked, the phone’s camera is activated so that you or anyone can stand in front of the camera and take a realistic looking picture with a computer generated image of RLD chief Choudhary.
The same message with a camera icon also asks users to visit RLD’s social media pages on Facebook, Twitter or WhatsApp, which have been set up specifically for the 2022 elections.
RLD and other technology
RLD has been adopting technology for its daily work as it saves time.
Rathi told ThePrint that in the last three months, RLD has started using an app for data collection. Booth workers can now add details directly in the app instead of recording voter information on paper, thereby saving the time of manual data entry.
The app also helps the party keep track of workers and where they are, allowing the RLD to reward those who are working the hardest.
In August, RLD did launched An augmented reality app to pay tribute to party supporters and take a picture with a computer-generated image of RLD founder Late Chaudhary Ajit Singh, who passed away in May.
(Edited by Arun Prashant)
Read also: Congress loses its prominent Jat faces in western UP as Malik family set to join SP
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