Short circuit snaps Villupuram EVM strongroom surveillance

CHENNAI: Surveillance mechanism in place for the EVM strongroom at Arignar Anna Government Arts College in Villupuram was down for nearly 30 minutes on Friday. It was the third such incident reported in the state in the last six days and it created a flutter for a while.

Officials said that live streaming of the strongroom in Villupuram had been disturbed for nearly 30 minutes from 9.28 am on Friday due to power fluctuation. Erratic power supply blew the fuse of the UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supply) connected to the live streaming of the CCTV cameras that focused at the sealed doors of the strongrooms.

On information, Villupuram Returning Officer and Collector C Palani rushed to the counting centre and took measures. The officials from Tangedco also rushed to the spot and checked the power supply to the counting centre. The livestreaming was restored by 9.58 am. The Collector instructed the Tangedco officials to ensure uninterrupted and reliable power supply to the centre.

The Collector also took the agents of candidates in the fray to the strongroom to ensure everything was in place and ruled out any suspicion. “The officials have installed an additional live-streaming to the existing one to avoid such problems,” said VCK candidate D

Ravikumar, who petitioned the Collector to take appropriate measures to avoid such incidents till the counting day on June 4.

Ravikumar also cited the Election Commission’s communication on Standard Operating Procedure on security arrangements for the counting centres. “There is a specific direction to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the counting centres during the EVM storage period. The Collector should ensure that,” he added.

TN Chief Electoral Officer Satyabrata Sahoo directed the DEOs to take precautionary measures in all the 39 centres to guarantee reliable power supply to the respective counting centres to avoid short-circuit.