CHENNAI: The counting of votes for the 16 Assembly constituencies in Chennai district will be held at three designated centres in the city — Queen Mary’s College, Loyola College, and Anna University — from 8am on Monday.
The counting of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) votes will be carried out on 14 tables per constituency. In total, 291 tables have been set up across the three centres, including 224 tables for EVM counting and 51 tables for postal ballots, as per Election Commission of India (ECI) data.
At the Queen Mary’s College centre, counting will be conducted in 18 rounds for Dr Radhakrishnan Nagar assembly constituency, 17 rounds for Thiru-Vi-Ka Nagar constituency, 14 rounds each for Royapuram and Harbour constituencies, and 17 rounds for Chepauk-Triplicane constituency.
At Loyola College, counting will take place in 22 rounds for Perambur assembly constituency, 21 rounds for Kolathur, 19 rounds for Villivakkam, 15 rounds for Egmore, 18 rounds for Thousand Lights, and 20 rounds for Anna Nagar assembly constituency.
At Anna University, the counting will be held in 23 rounds each for Virugambakkam and Velachery, 21 rounds for Saidapet, 18 rounds for T Nagar, and 20 rounds for Mylapore constituency.
According to corporation officials, postal ballots will be counted at four tables in each constituency, while service voters’ votes (ETPBS) will be handled at separate dedicated tables.
The EVMs used during polling on April 23 have been sealed and placed under a three-tier security system at these three locations, with continuous CCTV surveillance. A total of 1,160 security personnel have been engaged in round-the-clock duties in three shifts across these centres, with district election officer J Kumaragurubaran also conducting inspections.
Chennai has 4,085 polling stations across 16 assembly constituencies. A total of 1,496 personnel, including returning officers, assistant returning officers, micro-observers, and supervisor assistants have been deployed for the counting process in Chennai. To ensure smooth and transparent counting, training sessions were also provided to them in April, officials added.