Coimbatore Corporation will be installing 3,612 electronic voting machines without the voter verified paper for the upcoming local body polls, for which preparations have started. The civic body will also use 1,548 ballot control units in 1,290 polling booths. The Corporation has finalized the locations where it will set up the poll booths and identified 169 of the 1,290 booths to be sensitive. At each of the sensitive booths, the civic body will install CCTV cameras to livestream the conduct of elections, as a surveillance measure.
At present the civic body is in the process of correlating the voters list with streets and wards to ensure universal franchise. As on January 24, the Corporation had 15.61 lakh voters – 7.80 lakh men, 7.81 lakh women and 297 third gender voters. Once the Corporation completed the correlation process, it will send the voters’ list to the State Election Commission, the sources mentioned. The Corporation would appoint an officer as assistant returning officer to receive nomination for five wards. Totally, there will be 20 such for the 100 wards who will report to the Corporation commissioner.
The sources mentioned that the Corporation was also engaged in earmarking rooms to be used at the counting centre being established at the GCT College on Thadagam Road. The Corporation has planned to conduct the counting zone-wise and required strong rooms, material storage room and counting room for counting votes, the sources mentioned.
