The Madhya Pradesh State Election Commission (SEC) has conducted a successful trial of paperless voting during a panchayat bypoll in Bhopal district, recording an 84 per cent voter turnout, an official reported.
The paperless voting system was implemented for the first time in India at polling station-295 Ratua Ratanpur in the Berasia development block on Wednesday.
State Election Commission Secretary Abhishek Singh explained that the initiative aims to simplify, streamline, and enhance the transparency of the voting process in panchayats and urban bodies. Traditionally, 26 forms are used to complete all procedures and reporting at polling stations, often leading to disputes and court cases over errors.
The new paperless booths digitise these forms, with signatures and thumb impressions recorded electronically for voter identification and record-keeping.
Voting percentages and ballot accounting were also managed online, with updates provided every two hours. Post-poll, ballot paper accounts will be sent to candidates and polling agents via email.
Efforts are underway to refine both hardware and software to potentially expand this paperless system to polling stations across the state in the future.
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