An Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) is a rectangular device used to record votes in elections. It consists of three units: a ballot unit, a control unit, and a voter-verifiable-paper-audit-trail (VVPAT) unit.
The ballot unit allows voters to make their selection by pressing one of the blue buttons next to the serial number, name, and symbol of the candidate of their choice or choose the option “none of the above”. The VVPAT unit produces a paper slip that is visible to the voter for about seven seconds before being stored in a sealed drop box. The control unit is used by the officer in charge to ensure that each voter can only cast one vote.
During voting, the control unit is placed next to the officer in charge while the ballot and VVPAT units are kept in a voting compartment for voters to make their choices privately. The entire system operates without any wired or wireless connectivity to outside sources. Each ballot unit can accommodate 16 candidate options including “none of the above”, and up to 24 ballot units can be connected to a control unit allowing for a maximum of 384 candidates per seat. EVM systems can record up to 2,000 votes and are powered by batteries or power packs supplied by government manufacturers such as Bharat Electronics Ltd and Electronics Corp of India. Election staff carefully monitor and check each EVM before and during the election process to ensure accuracy and integrity of the voting system.
