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Kolkata, Oct 31 (IANS) The Election Commission of India (ECI) has expressed surprise at the significantly lower ratio of booth-level officers (BLOs) appointed by the commission to booth-level agents (BLAs) nominated by political parties in West Bengal, amid the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state.
While the total number of BLOs appointed by the ECI in West Bengal is 80,681, a satisfactory figure considering the state’s 7.66 crore voters, the current strength of BLAs is only 18,114, indicating a notable reluctance among political parties to deploy agents for this exercise.
At an all-party meeting held on 28 October, West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal reportedly expressed concern over the shortage, and urged party representatives to appoint adequate number of BLAs to ensure a transparent and efficient vetting process. He also assured that the BLOs will maintain regular interaction with BLAs of all recognized parties during the SIR.
An insider in the CEO office said, “Now, with the BLO-to-BLA ratio being so low in West Bengal, the process of regular BLO-BLA negotiations will be disrupted to a great extent. Therefore, the Commission is insisting that political parties take proactive steps to appoint adequate number of BLAs.”
It is learned that the CEO office has also directed the District Magistrates, who act as District Election Officers, to emphasize to the political parties the need to nominate adequate BLAs during the upcoming district-level all-party meetings.
Earlier this week, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar announced SIR for 12 Indian states, including West Bengal. The first phase of the three-phase SIR will begin from November 4.
In the first phase, BLOs will go door-to-door with enumeration forms to collect voter details, after which a draft voter list will be published.
During the second phase, political parties and individual voters will have the opportunity to lodge objections or suggestions on the draft roll, which will be reviewed by the Commission.
In the final stage, the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) will resolve these complaints and incorporate necessary corrections before releasing the final voter list.
The entire SIR process is expected to be completed by March 2026. The last such amendment in West Bengal was made in 2002.
-IANS
Source/PGH