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EVM machines

14th January, 2022

Figure 1: No Copyright Infringement Intended

Context

  • Chief Minister of Chhattiesgal's father questioned the credibility of the electronic balloting machine (EVM) and, in a letter to the president, called for a national election to be held on a ballot.

 

About EVM:

  • Introduced in India in 1982, the Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) allows citizens to vote electronically and easily increase the number of votes cast by the Indian Election Commission.
  • It consists of two units, a control unit and a selection unit.
  • They are connected by a 5 meter cable. The EVM is powered by a 6 volt alkaline battery mounted on the control unit.
  • It can be used even in places without electricity. The control unit is an election supervisor elected by the Election Commission.

 

Advantage of the EVM:

  • Voting Rights: It is a constitutional obligation and the responsibility of the Election Commission and the central government to introduce such a transparent voting and counting system into elections so that the public and voters themselves can evaluate it.
  • Difficult for hackers to hack: Most advanced versions of electronic voting machines do not have an external communication line that makes it difficult for hackers to hack machines and manipulate counts.
  • Cheaper to use: Electronic voting machines are cheap and economical. When choosing paper, the amount of raw materials used is high. Paper Voting Paper has a direct impact on the environment because it uses paper to vote.
  • Save time: Vote counting in minutes makes life easier for voting workers on duty. With paper voting, counting votes is very tedious and time consuming.
  • Check Bogus voting: Electronic voting machines are very effective against fake voting. Electronic voting machines are programmed to win up to 5 votes per minute. Therefore, it is not possible to cast the wrong vote with one vote.
  • Easy to Carry: Electronic voting machines are easy to carry and can be moved from one place to another. One device can record multiple votes collected through that device.

 

Disadvantage of EVM:

  • No Accreditation: National or internationally recognized agencies or governments do not accredit EVM as a percentage accuracy.
  • Vulnerable to hacking: Many software programmers claim that electronic voting machines are vulnerable to malicious programming. Once affected, hackers can easily hack machines and tamper with votes.
  • Data loss: The biggest change in technology is that a single virus can destroy the entire data store, regardless of the amount of data recorded.
  • Impact of weather: Humid or wet areas are not suitable for voting with electronic voting machines.
  • Fake Voting: Most electronic balloters used in the country do not have a mechanism for voters to verify their identity before votin This allows fake voters to make a large number of fake votes.

VVPAT:

  • Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs) or Validated Paper Records (VPRs) are a way to provide feedback to voters who use a voting system without
  • VVPAT is intended as an independent verification system for voting machines, a means by which voters verify that voting is correct, detect potential fraudulent votes and malfunctions, and verify stored electronic results.
  • Includes the candidate's name (who was voted) and the party / individual candidate symbol. VVPAT offers some basic differences as a paper and electronic recording medium for storing votes.