The Election Commission of India on Monday announced the successful completion of the first randomization of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs) for Phase-I of the Bihar Legislative Assembly elections. This critical exercise comes as preparations intensify for the first phase of polling scheduled on November 6.
Following the ECI’s strict guidelines, District Election Officers (DEOs) from all 18 districts participating in Phase-I conducted the randomization process after completing the First Level Checking (FLC) of the EVMs and VVPATs. The randomization was carried out using the EVM Management System (EMS) and witnessed by representatives of National and State Recognised Political Parties, highlighting the Commission’s commitment to transparency and impartiality.
A total of 54,311 Ballot Units (BUs), 54,311 Control Units (CUs), and 58,123 VVPAT machines were randomly assigned across 121 Assembly Constituencies, which together comprise 45,336 polling stations for Phase-I. Detailed constituency-wise lists of the randomized voting machines were handed over to political party representatives at district headquarters to ensure full disclosure.
The allocated EVMs and VVPATs have now been securely stored in Assembly Strong Rooms, guarded in the presence of party representatives to maintain the integrity and security of the election equipment.
The Bihar Assembly elections are being conducted in two phases, with Phase-I and Phase-II polling scheduled for November 6 and November 11, respectively.
Once the list of candidates for each constituency is finalized, the Commission will share the finalized randomized EVM and VVPAT allocations with all contesting candidates, further reinforcing transparency.
This meticulous and inclusive randomization protocol forms a key pillar of the Election Commission’s efforts to ensure free, fair, and transparent elections, strengthening public confidence in the democratic process as Bihar prepares to elect its new government.