VARANASI, Sept. 12 -- The district magistrates of 21 districts attended a special workshop that was organised at the Circuit House auditorium in Varanasi on Friday with an objective to provide training on technical and administrative procedures to the concerned officials and personnel regarding the proposed First Level Checking (FLC) of EVMs and VVPATs in the districts. Senior deputy election commissioner, Election Commission of India, Manish Garg chaired the workshop. The workshop was held in accordance with the directives and intent of the Election Commission of India, and with the aim of ensuring that the First Level Checking (FLC) process for EVM and VVPAT machines is conducted with quality, transparency, and adherence to prescribed standards. District election officers, deputy district election officers, and FLC supervisors from 21 districts namely Varanasi, Jaunpur, Ghazipur, Chandauli, Mirzapur, Sonbhadra, Bhadohi, Prayagraj, Pratapgarh, Fatehpur, Kaushambi, Azamgarh, Ballia, Mau, Gorakhpur, Deoria, Maharajganj, Gonda, Sant Kabir Nagar, Basti, and Siddharthnagar, participated in the workshop. The programme was inaugurated by Manish Garg (senior deputy election commissioner, Election Commission of India), alongside distinguished guests chief electoral officer, Uttar Pradesh Navdeep Rinwa, additional chief electoral officer, Uttar Pradesh Akhand Pratap Singh, principal secretary, Election Commission of India BC Patra, deputy chief electoral officer, Uttar Pradesh Amit Singh, and under secretary, ECI, Rakesh Kumar. During the workshop, the senior deputy election commissioner provided guidance on key aspects. The chief electoral officer of Uttar Pradesh and other senior officials outlined essential guidelines and precautions regarding the First Level Checking (FLC) of EVMs and VVPATs. Additionally, presentations were delivered covering technical and administrative security measures for EVMs, the FLC process, and the roles of officials and master trainers at various levels. Subsequently, participants practised operating the machines and following the prescribed procedures themselves. Actively engaging in the hands-on training, participants gained an understanding of both the technical and practical aspects of EVMs and VVPATs. At the conclusion of the training, the participants were evaluated, and a doubt-clearing session was held to address their questions and queries....