BENGALURU: Bharat Electronics Ltd, which supplied 76 per cent of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) and Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) for this Lok Sabha elections, stated there was not a single case of mismatch between the two machines. Speaking at a press conference, the chairman and managing director of BEL, M V Gowtama, said, “They are non-tamperable.”
When asked about allegations regarding polling and counting mismatches, he said, “Democracy can survive only on EVMs. Rigging cannot take place and if it does, it can be detected. Any candidate who has apprehensions can approach the Supreme Court in the next 45 days. The machines are kept securely for analysis.”
Nataraj Krishnappa, Director (other units) at BEL, said, “The election commission even organised a hackathon where the option was given to political parties to hack it. None came forward. There were doubts regarding them being hacked wirelessly through Bluetooth. But there is no Bluetooth identification device in EVMs. “
Common mobility cards for all Metros
“The government is planning to implement the national common mobility card. We plan to install two or three fare gates in each metro station in Delhi this year, following which we will expand to other metros in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai and Kochi. The aim is to have one card that can be used in any Metro in India along with road transports like public buses,” Gowtama said. It will take two to three years for all Metro rails in India to get a common mobility card.
BEL, ISRO to work together
BEL is also working with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Space Centre. “We have acquired 30 acres in Devanahalli from Karnataka State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd and are getting trained by ISRO to meet their quality standards for manufacturing, assembling, integrating and testing of satellites. A new space electronic unit will come up there,” BEL MD Gowtama said.
Radars can see through clouds
When asked if radars are affected by clouds, in reference to a statement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which triggered criticism and trolls, the CMD of BEL said, “I would not like to comment on his statement. However, we manufacture doppler radars which can see clouds and measure water content in them. The Indian Air Force also uses radars which can see through clouds.”