The Election Commission of India has finished the first randomisation of EVM-VVPATs for the upcoming Assembly elections in Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry. This process, conducted using specialized software, ensures a secure and fair allocation of machines to constituencies and polling stations. The randomisation prevents tampering and human intervention, maintaining the secrecy of machine locations until just before the election.
EVMs are distributed through a two-stage randomisation process from district-level warehouses to polling stations. The District Election Officers in all poll-bound States/UTs are required to complete the first randomisation of EVM-VVPATs that have passed the First Level Checking as per the ECI’s directions. The randomisation process was carried out for the general elections in Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry, as well as for bye-elections in Goa, Karnataka, Nagaland, and Tripura.
The randomisation of EVMs was conducted using the EVM Management System by the District Election Officers in the presence of representatives from National and State Recognised Political Parties. Lists of randomised EVMs and VVPATs have been shared with the political party representatives at their respective district headquarters. These machines will be stored in the Assembly Strong Room under the supervision of party representatives until the finalisation of contesting candidates.
