Poll officials review EVM security for counting day

“Two layers of security have been deployed for the safety of EVMs at all centres. While personnel of paramilitary force form the inner circle of security, Delhi Police officers are ensuring their safety from outside,” Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev said.

Delhi registered its highest voter turnout of 65.09 per cent in the Lok Sabha polls on April 10.

Officials, on Monday, visited counting centres of two parliamentary seats — the strongrooms at N P Bengali Girls Senior Secondary School in Gole Market (New Delhi) and Integrated Institute of Technology located in Dwaraka Sector-9 (Southwest) — to take stock of the arrangements for the counting of votes.

Officials said counting in all seven Lok Sabha seats will begin at 8 am on Friday. “Postal ballots will be counted first. After a gap of 30 minutes, the EVMs will be opened. Assistant returning officers (AROs) will oversee the counting of the postal ballot,” Dev said.

According to Election Commission regulations, there will be 10 micro observers deployed in each parliamentary seat and an assistant electoral registration officer (AERO) for each counting table. Mobile phones and other electronic gadgets have been banned on counting premises, but election officials can use laptops or other devices to transmit results.

Barring the counting supervisors, micro observers and persons authorised by the Election Commission, no one else will be allowed to enter the counting centres. The media will also be barred from entering the counting centres, officials said.