Guntur district collector Kona Sasidhar (IAS:2003:AP) has earned the prestigious best electoral practices award from the Election Commission of India (ECI) for having set the national record by enrolling 50,000 young voters in a single day in the district.

Governor ESL Narasimhan presented the award to the district collector on the occasion of National Voters Day (NVD) in Vijayawada on Friday.

AP Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gopalakrishna Dwivedi said that district administration headed by Sasidhar took up the voters' registration campaign through innovative methods including the use of hot-air balloons, para-gliders to rope in the youth.

"Now, it is the responsibility of the youth to exercise their franchise in the next elections to elect the new government. The job of the youth was not over just by getting registered as a voter," Sasidhar said.

He added that youth should play role in electing a responsible government since youth would play a crucial role in building the nation.