GoM backs EC proposal to buy 14 lakh EVMs

An informal group of ministers has cleared an Election Commission proposal to buy nearly 14 lakh new electronic voting machines (EVMs) at a cost of over Rs 5000 crore ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The GoM, headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, is learnt to have sent its recommendation to the Prime Minister’s Office supporting the purchase of EVMs in batches.

“The minutes of the meeting have been sent to the PMO for approval. Once the minutes are approved, the Union Cabinet will take up the proposal to buy new EVMs,” a senior government functionary said. The Election Commission had last year approached the government to buy nearly 14 lakh new electronic voting machines.

In its January 18 meeting, the Expenditure Finance Committee headed by Secretary Expenditure in the Finance Ministry, gave in-principle approval for the purchase of 13,95,648 new balloting units and 9,30,432 control units at an estimated cost of Rs 5,511.48 crore between financial years 2015-16 and 2018-19.

Sources in the government said an estimated Rs 1,872 crore would be required in 2016-17 for the new EVMs, but final figures will be available when the EC issues tender. The Election Commission wants to purchase new machines against the backdrop of over nine lakh such machines currently in use nearing end of their 15-year life.

The two government undertakings—Bharat Electronics Ltd, Bengaluru and Electronic Corporation of India Ltd, Hyderabad will not be in a position to produce new EVMs in one go and would provide it to the Commission in batches.

The machines EC gets in batches can be used in coming assembly polls and by the time the next Lok Sabha polls are due the delivery will be completed.

In a proposal sent to the Law Ministry, the Commission had said that 9,30,430 EVMs in use today would become “outdated” between 2015-16 and 2019-20.

Director General in the Election Commission Sudeep Jain, who appeared before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Personnel recently, had flagged the issue of the limitations of the two PSUs will face in producing EVMs on a short notice.

“For 2016-17, we have asked for Rs 1,800 crore. So, every year, we will have to do it because of the production capacity of these companies. If we give them only one year, they will not be able to produce it,” he was quoted in the report of the Committee tabled in Parliament yesterday.