New Delhi, April 16 -- The Election Commission of India on Thursday commenced the commissioning of EVMs and VVPATs for constituencies of Tamil Nadu and the first phase in West Bengal on April 23.

The commissioning began in the presence of the candidates or their authorised representatives as well as General Observers, according to the release.

The Commission stated that the commissioning exercise will be followed by a mock poll of 1,000 votes in 5 per cent of the EVMs, which will be randomly selected by candidates or their representatives. Candidates will also be permitted to conduct mock polls themselves.

Before commissioning, EVMs were allocated to polling stations through a two-stage randomisation process using the EVM Management Sy...