The electronic voting machines used in the 5 Assembly segments in the election held on Tuesday were brought to the Government College of Engineering, the counting centre on the Nagercoil highway, to be kept in the strongrooms.
A total of 157 lorries with armed policemen collected the EVMs from the polling stations and brought it to Government College of Engineering in Palayamkottai. As the EVMs were being brought to the Government College of Engineering since last night, additional policemen and the Central Reserve Police Force personnel were deployed in and around the college. The EVMs were kept in the ‘strong room’ which were sealed in the presence of Collector V. Vishnu on Wednesday.
“We’ve fitted 156 surveillance cameras inside the strong room and all over the Government College of Engineering premises to beef-up the 3-tier security,” said Mr. Vishnu, who was accompanied by Commissioner of Police, Tirunelveli City, T.S. Anbu, Superintendent of Police, Tirunelveli, N. Manivannan, Deputy Commissioners of Police, Srinivasan and Magesh.
Mr. Sreenivasan said 450 policemen – 150 in each shift – will be deployed on the premises of Government College of Engineering in three shifts besides the Central Reserve Police Force personnel, who have been deployed near the ‘strong rooms’
Floodlights fitted at vantage points in and around Government College of Engineering, which has become a fortress and sterile zone now, enable the policemen deployed there to locate any suspicious movement in the night. Watch towers have been erected on the four sides of this college, on which armed policemen with binoculars have been deployed.
In Thoothukudi, the EVMs used in Vilaathikulam, Ottapidaaram (Reserved), Kovilpatti, Thoothukudi, Srivaikundam and Tiruchendur constituencies were brought to Government Engineering College. After being kept in the strong rooms fitted with CCTV cameras, the rooms were sealed in the presence of Collector K. Senthil Raj on Wednesday.
The EVMs used in the polls for five Assembly segments in Tenkasi were brought to USP Polytechnic College in nearby Kodikurichi. District Collector G. S. Sameeran and Superintendent of Police Suguna Singh inspected the unloading of the EVMs that were kept in the strong rooms.
In Kanniyakumari, the EVMs were kept in the strong room in Government Engineering College at Konam in the presence of Collector M. Aravind.