Government to Purchase 50K EVMs, Rent Additional 25K to Ensure Smooth Local Polls

by Webdesk
12 Aug 2025

Mumbai: The Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) has taken a significant step in preparation for the upcoming local body elections by placing an order for 50,000 new electronic voting machines (EVMs). In addition, the SEC has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Madhya Pradesh State Election Commission to rent another 25,000 EVMs. These machines will be deployed for conducting polls across the state in the coming months.

According to SEC estimates, a total of around 1.5 lakh EVMs will be necessary to smoothly conduct the elections for 687 rural and urban local bodies scheduled in three phases after the Diwali festival.

State Election Commissioner Dinesh Waghmare informed that the 50,000 new machines are being procured from the Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL). These machines are specially designed to support polling in multi-member wards, which are common in certain local body setups.

Unlike Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections—where voters choose only one representative per constituency—some municipal corporations and district councils in Maharashtra require voters to select multiple representatives from a single ward. This can only be facilitated if the EVMs have the capability to include multiple candidates on the ballot unit. The newly purchased machines will be able to meet this requirement.

The cost of each new EVM, inclusive of the memory module and battery, has been fixed at ₹20,000. The SEC expects delivery of these machines by October. Meanwhile, the rented 25,000 EVMs from the Madhya Pradesh SEC will cost ₹1,000 per unit.

The SEC’s tentative plan for the local body polls is to hold them in three separate phases after Diwali. The first phase, likely in November, will cover elections to district councils and panchayat samitis. The second phase, expected in December, will see voting for municipal councils and nagar panchayats. The third and final phase will involve elections to major municipal corporations, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

An official from the Urban Development Department revealed that the SEC is also considering conducting vote counting in phases rather than waiting until all three phases are over. This would allow EVMs used in earlier phases to be freed up for later ones, thus optimising the use of machines. However, the final call on phased counting will be taken after consultations with various political parties.

On the preparatory side, SEC officials stated that the process of ward formation for district councils and panchayat samitis is expected to be completed by August 25. For municipal councils, nagar panchayats, and municipal corporations, the ward formation exercise will conclude by October 13. Following ward formation, the finalisation of the voters’ list and the draw for reservation categories will take place within 15 days.

Only after these procedures are finished will the election dates be officially announced. According to officials, polls can be held roughly 45 days after the completion of all these steps.

The upcoming elections are expected to be a massive logistical exercise, given the large number of local bodies involved and the need to coordinate resources across rural and urban areas. The SEC’s proactive move to secure additional EVMs—both through purchase and rental—reflects its focus on ensuring a smooth electoral process without last-minute shortages or technical hurdles.

Political analysts believe that the multi-phase schedule will not only help manage the logistics better but will also give political parties more time to campaign effectively in different regions. The decision to potentially adopt phased counting is also being seen as a smart strategy to make efficient use of available EVMs while speeding up the results process for early phases.

As the SEC works on completing ward formation, reservation draws, and voter list updates, all eyes will be on how the three-phase election calendar unfolds after Diwali. With the inclusion of BMC polls in the third phase, political temperatures are expected to rise significantly towards the end of the year, making this one of Maharashtra’s most closely watched local body elections in recent times.

Image Courtesy:

02 Jan 2026

BMC Elections

Government to Purchase 50K EVMs, Rent Additional 25K to Ensure Smooth Local Polls

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