Minister for Science and Technology Shibli Faraz said on Tuesday that his ministry had developed electronic voting machines, which will make the electoral process fair and transparent. The Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) would be placed before the federal cabinet, Parliament, political parties, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), and media for review before their introduction in the next general polls.
While talking to the media, Minister for Science and Technology Shibli Faraz said; “The electronic voting machine has been developed according to requirements of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). Today we have briefed the Cabinet about this new device and its benefits.” He further added that the use of technology in elections will be beneficial for the losing candidate to recognize the results.
Locally manufactured cost-effective EVMs
The machines are being developed using indigenous technologies, at half the cost of imported devices, by the National University for Science and Technology, Comsats, and the National Institute of Engineering (NIE). The three departments could manufacture 2000 machines where the machines coster around Rs. 65,000 each. This is half the price of the casual voting machine having imported components.
Features of Electronic Voting Machines
EVM is user-friendly with multiple feathers; it would help save the time of collecting and announcing results, the audit would be possible through a bar code, and data of every polling station can be accessed easily. The machine has a battery life of two days.
According to Shibli Faraz, a special paper would be used on which the ink would not fade or dull for five years. Counting votes would be a push of a button away and could be completed between 30 minutes to one hour. It can be operated in areas where temperatures drop to ten degrees below zero and in regions where the mercury touches 55 degrees centigrade.
Read more: The government of Pakistan will reveal EVM finished production model on 14th August
Prevention against cyberattacks
Talking about cyber attacks he said that the machines would be tested against cyber attacks, the identity of the voter would remain anonymous, information would be encrypted. No kind of tampering with the machine would be possible and only registered voters would be able to cast their vote through these devices. The machine has no internet and no operating system. Due to the Internet and software vulnerabilities, it is free from external interference.
Source: The News
