Agartala, 12th November 2026 : Voters in Tripura will not have the facility to verify their votes through Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines during the upcoming municipal elections, as the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) being used by the State Election Commission (SEC) are not equipped with the required technology.
Clarifying the issue, SEC Secretary Anurag Sen said the EVMs used by the State Election Commission for local body elections are technically different from those operated by the Election Commission of India (ECI). Unlike the ECI’s machines, which support VVPAT systems, the SEC’s ballot units do not have provisions for attaching or operating the paper audit trail facility.
Sen explained that the absence of VVPATs is due to the technical limitations of the machines rather than any separate decision by the Commission.
Meanwhile, preparations are progressing for the statewide municipal elections scheduled for November 27. The SEC is taking necessary steps to ensure that polling is conducted peacefully and smoothly while adhering to the prescribed electoral guidelines.
According to Sen, Returning Officers have started training election personnel to familiarise them with their respective responsibilities. The process of commissioning EVMs will be carried out from November 18 to 20.
He also said special arrangements would be made to enable polling personnel, who are themselves registered voters, to exercise their franchise through separate voting facilities. Such provisions are part of the standard electoral arrangements to ensure that officials engaged in election duties are not deprived of their voting rights.
