Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT)
- October 9, 2022
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT)
Context:
- A petition was admitted by Mumbai based activist AkshayBajad in the Supreme Court last month that called for the introduction of technology to allow visually challenged voters to verify their votes.
- It suggested that image text to speech (ITTS) conversion software be added to the electronic voting machines (EVM) and voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) units used for elections.
What is VVPAT:
Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail is an independent system consisting of two parts, namely,VVPAT Printer and VVPAT Status Display Unit (VSDU) attached with the Electronic Voting Machines that allows the voters to verify that their votes are cast as intended.
- When a vote is cast, a slip is printed containing the serial number, name and symbol of the candidate and remains exposed through a transparent window for 7 seconds.
- Thereafter, this printed slip gets automatically cut and falls in sealed drop box of the VVPAT.
Facts related to VVPAT:
- VVPATs with EVMs were used for the first time in a bye-election from Noksen (ST) assembly constituency of Nagaland in 2013.
- VVPAT -fitted EVMs were used in entire Goa assembly elections of 2017 which was also the first time that VVPAT with EVM was used in the entire state.
- VVPAT was used in the general election of 2019 in all the 543 constituencies for the first time.
- VVPAT runs on a power pack (Battery) of 15 volts.
Rules related to VVPAT.
- The use of VVPATs falls under Rule 49A of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, which provides that every EVM shall have a control unit and a balloting unit.