Voters take part in the mock polling at Sohra on Saturday. Telegraph picture

Sohra, Aug. 25: A mock poll held in Sohra today tested the improved version of the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail, which is attached to the electronic voting machines.

People lined up in 28 polling stations, 14 each in Sohra and adjoining Shella constituencies, to participate in the experiment. Counting of votes of the mock poll will be held in Shillong on Monday.

A similar drill had been conducted at Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, in East Delhi and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. The VVPAT is an independent verification system for voting machines. It is designed to allow voters to verify if their votes have been cast correctly. The technology also provides room to detect possible election fraud or malfunction and to audit the stored electronic results.

The system, used by some South American countries, has been developed by Bharat Electrical Ltd and Electronic Corporation of India Ltd.

After last year’s field trial, it was felt that the VVPAT system needed improvement. The BEL and ECIL produced prototypes of the improved VVPAT, which was demonstrated to the Election Commission’s technical expert committee on EVMs.

On the basis of the feedback received last year, the commission chose to use closed printer instead of an opened printer. In a closed printer, a voter, after pressing a button against a candidate, can see the ballot paper for at least five seconds where the serial number, symbol and name of the candidate is printed before disappearing into a sealed box. In an “opened printer”, a voter can take the printed ballot paper out before depositing it in a box.

Deputy election commissioner Vinod Zutshi said the improved version has an error unit along with the control unit, which displays error in case of any malfunctioning, including if the printer stops. He expressed satisfaction with the new system but added that much would depend on the overall report.

Some voters also felt the new system was better. “I feel this machine is more transparent and tamper-proof,” said Divya Tiwari, an MCA student of St Anthony’s College, Shillong, after “casting” her vote at Sohrarim polling station. Aiti Sawian, an elderly woman, who cast her vote at Maraikaphon polling station, and Maraikaphon headman J.J. Sawian echoed Tiwari.

Members of Mizo National Front, including its secretary in-charge of elections James Ralte, who came from Mizoram, also felt the new system was better.

Zutshi said the VVPAT would not be used in the Meghalaya Assembly elections next year. “It is a long process and will take time.” He said the commission would send the reports of the exercise to the technical expert committee, BEL and ECIL. “Based on the reports, the committee will send recommendations to the commission, which will then decide what should be done,” he said.