The PWD has started constructing warehouses in six district headquarters to store EVMs (electronic voting machines) and VVPATs (voter verified paper audit trails). It has also initiated preliminary work for poll arrangements, including for counting centres and polling booths across the State, ahead of Assembly elections.
While the department has already built such warehouses in 31 district headquarters in 2021, it has started Rs.36.39 crore project in districts where new district administration buildings were recently constructed.
The new buildings are being constructed in the collectorate premises in districts, including Ranipet, Kallakurichi, Tirupathur, Tenkasi, Chengalpattu and Mayiladuthurai, to ensure storage of EVMs and VVPATS after counting of votes in May.
Officials of the PWD said some warehouses like in Chengalpattu and Ranipet would be single-storeyed structures with facilities, including CCTV surveillance. Each structure has been designed based on the number of EVMs and VVPATs to be stored. While rooms have been designed without windows to store EVMs, measures would be taken to provide sufficient ventilation.
In Tirupattur, the warehouse would come up in a plinth area of nearly 8,124 sq.ft. and have facilities such as first level checking room, storage rooms and rooms for security personnel.
