Chennai: On Sunday night, a snag in one of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras stationed at the Government College of Engineering raised concerns over the security of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) collected from across the Erode Lok Sabha constituency.
According to reports, the malfunction occurred around midnight, affecting only one CCTV camera positioned near the strongroom designated for EVMs from the Erode West assembly constituency. However, swift action was taken to rectify the issue, and the camera was back online within an hour. Officials assured that all other cameras remained operational throughout the incident.
EVMs from six assembly constituencies within the Erode Lok Sabha Constituency are securely stored in separate strong rooms, each sealed to maintain the integrity of the electoral process. To bolster security, a multi-layered protection system is in place, with CISF personnel stationed at the inner perimeter and state police personnel monitoring the outer rings.
Erode Lok Sabha constituency Returning Officer and District Collector Raja Gopal Sunkara provided insights into the surveillance infrastructure, stating that out of the 221 CCTV cameras installed, 48 were positioned in front of the strong rooms, while 170 covered the college premises. Continuous monitoring has been conducted, with Sunkara and the Superintendent of Police conducting bi-daily inspections over the past ten days.
This incident comes shortly after a similar technical glitch affected CCTV monitoring at Ooty Government Polytechnic College, where EVMs were stored. However, authorities promptly resolved the issue within 20 minutes, underscoring the commitment to ensuring the security and integrity of the electoral process.