By Our Reporter
Shillong: Despite receiving a overwhelming response from electorate, the Vote Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) system, which was set on field trail for the second time in Sohra (Cherrapunjee) on Saturday, will, however, not be used in Meghalaya Assembly elections due in 2013, an Election Commission official said here on Saturday.
Confirming this, the deputy Election Commissioner of India, Vinod Zutshi said the electronic voting machines (EVMs) would be used during next year’s assembly elections in various states.
The VVPAT is an independent verification system for voting machines designed to allow voters to verify that their votes were cast correctly. The technology also provides room to detect possible election fraud or malfunction and to audit the stored electronic results.
The VVPAT, used by some South American countries, has been developed by Bharat Electrical Ltd (BEL) and Electronic Corporation of India Limited (ECIL).
Voters on Saturday participated in a mock poll conducted by the Election Commission as part of an exercise to test the humidity resistance of the new improved VVPAT along with EVMs.
College students, women and curious elders from the villages comprised the voters that took part in the poll which took place in two constituencies – Sohra and Shella – each having 14 polling stations.
The counting will be held at JN stadium, Polo on August 27.
A similar drill was also earlier conducted at Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, East Delhi district and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.
However, based on last year’s feedback, the Election Commission has improved the VVPAT system by introducing the error machine which displays an error, if occurs during casting of votes.
Terming the system as ‘voters’ friendly’, the Deputy Election Commissioner said “Overall, I am satisfied with this improved version of VVPAT but it will depend on the overall reports which will come to the commission and subsequently forwarded to the expert committee of the commission for examination”.
Members of the Mizo National Front (MNF), who had come all the way from Mizoram to take part in the election, exuded confidence that if such a system can be put in place in the next Assembly elections, the ruling Congress would be voted out of power.
“We have always maintained that the traditional EVMs are doubtful basing on the outcome of the last Assembly elections held in 2008,” MNF secretary in-charge elections James Ralte said after casting his vote.