Damp circuit board behind EVM mess
About 300 ballot units suffered error during the polling.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The malfunctioning of EVMs in Malappuram and Thrissur districts during the recent local body polls was due to the dampness in the circuit boards because of the climatic conditions, according to the expert committee that probed the
matter.
Based on the committee report, state election commission K. Sasidharan Nair has directed the Electronic Corporation of India to make necessary technical upgradation in the EVMs.
DC had reported the other day that the committee comprising technical experts had ruled out any sabotage attempts, but pointed fingers at certain climatic conditions in the area for the fault.
According to a statement from the state election commission, the committee found that of the 1.12 lakh ballot units used for the polling, about 20,000 units in one batch were found to have dampness in the circuit boards. This could lead to malfunctioning. Hence, necessary technical upgradation has to be made in all the units in the batch.
About 300 ballot units suffered error during the polling. This delayed polling in many booths and re-polling had to be conducted in 114 booths.
The high-level team was led by Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) director-general Rajat Moona. Former pro-vice-chancellor of Indira Gandhi National Open University K.R. Sreevalsan and CDAC executive director B. Ramani were the other members of the committee.
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