Guwahati : The commissioning of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections 2026 will commence on March 31 across all 126 constituencies, officials said.

The process will be carried out at designated centres notified by District Election Officers under the supervision of engineers and technical teams from Electronics Corporation of India Limited, ensuring strict adherence to guidelines laid down by the Election Commission of India.

Officials said the commissioning exercise will take place in the presence of contesting candidates and their authorised representatives to maintain transparency and accountability.

A total of 41,353 Ballot Units (BUs), 45,572 Control Units (CUs), and 44,830 Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) units will be readied for deployment. In addition, reserve stock has been arranged, including 9,863 BUs, 14,082 CUs, and 13,340 VVPATs.

As per established norms, symbol loading in each VVPAT unit will be conducted using Symbol Loading Units (SLUs). Candidates and their representatives will be allowed to verify the process to ensure accuracy.

To further strengthen transparency, officials said candidates or their representatives may randomly select up to five per cent of the EVMs and VVPAT units for mock poll verification.

Polling for the 126-member Assembly is scheduled for April 9, with counting set for May 4. The election will be the first in the state following the recent delimitation exercise.