Election Commission sets up 90-screen control centre for Bengal polls

Kolkata: In a bid to roll out an all-encompassing surveillance system and prompt intervention on the polling day, the Election Commission has started its Control Command Centre in Kolkata, operational from today, with 90 screens. The entire system, with 72 screens, will help quick intervention on the polling day, along with round the clock monitoring, and real-time surveillance of all the booths across the state. In the first phase, 152 Assembly Constituencies with 50,000 polling booths will go to polls.

The 72 screens, with 12 camera feeds, at Control Command Centre, is enabled with the capacity to monitor 500 booths simultaneously, people in the know told ET. The 72 screens will be monitored 24X7 by the Micro-Observers from P-2 day (two days’ ahead of polling). Every screen will be monitored by two Micro-Observers, one will monitor the screen while another will take notes. Around 18 screens are operational from today, monitoring the Flying Surveillance Teams (FST) and Static Surveillance Teams (SST) from today.
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“An AI-based system is being developed, which will identify irregularities and alerts will reach the main control room immediately,” Special Rolls Observer Subrata Gupta said.

“There will be ten dedicated toll-free numbers will be introduced where the voters can call and lodge their complaints. Polling booths will come up on the screen whenever complaints are received on phone numbers, which will help omit the false calls,” he said.
“The purpose of such enhanced surveillance is aimed at prompt action and intervention on the day of the polling, so that if any irregularities are identified, immediately Sector officers, General and Police Observers, Returning Officers, QRT can take prompt action on the day of polling,” Gupta said. The surveillance system is the brainchild of Gupta, who is an IIT-KGP graduate.
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“As there will be 100% coverage, the Control room will act as a force multiplier, ” he added.

With the goal of 100% webcasting, the cameras will be installed inside and outside every booth on P-2 day. The ECI has decided that there will be two cameras in every booth, one inside and other outside. Two cameras will be installed inside and outside the booths, covering polling agents, polling staff and polling compartments inside the booths. However, no photos of EVMs are visible, EC top officials said.