The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday directed authorities in West Bengal to accelerate the citizen list mapping procedure as part of preparations for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), setting a due date of 7 days to finish the procedure, an authorities stated.
Almost 40 percent of the job stays incomplete, with development apparently slow in a number of districts, the authorities stated, elaborating that the mapping workout includes validating existing citizens versus the 2002 electoral roll to make sure precision in the 2025 list.
At an evaluation conference held at the workplace of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Kolkata throughout the day, senior Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti provided clear guidelines in this regard to district magistrates, electoral registration officers (EROs), and assistant EROs, omitting authorities from the disaster-affected districts of North Bengal, the main informed PTI.
Check Out: EC to take call on pan-India SIR rollout quickly; like to be held before year-end
Issues Over Sluggish Progress and Delays
Commission authorities revealed issue over the speed of work and questioned hold-ups, in spite of the Puja vacations being mentioned by some districts. Bharti declined the validation, worrying the value of staying up to date with the nationwide timeline, he stated.
“SIR is being conducted across the country, not just in Bengal. Other states have completed the task or are near completion. If West Bengal lags, it will create problems at the national level. Therefore, we cannot allow more than seven days,” Bharti informed authorities at the conference.
Reports of supposed abnormalities in the citizen list likewise emerged throughout the conference. Bharti alerted that any malpractice throughout the SIR procedure would welcome rigorous action.
“No one will be spared if complaints of malpractices are received. In Bihar, we have already taken tough measures,” he stated.
Training and Technology for Booth Level Officers
The quality of work by Booth Level Officers (BLOs), who were entrusted with ground-level confirmation, likewise came under examination.
Director General of the Commission’s IT department, Seema Khanna, explained that BLOs’ tech efficiency stays unacceptable and required instant conclusion of training programs.
She recommended a cluster-based training method, permitting skilled BLOs to assist others on making use of digital tools.
At the conference, the authorities went over the performance of the ‘ERONET’ app in information throughout the conference, the source stated.
“As per the Commission’s directive, the BLOs must upload voter data directly from the field using the app, enabling real-time monitoring by the Commission,” he stated.
Field Visits and Video Conferences
After the primary conference at the CEO’s workplace, the Commission’s group checked out the North 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad Bhawan and held conversations with election employees from the Rajarhat-Gopalpur and Rajarhat-New Town assembly constituencies. Different conferences were likewise accepted EROs and AEROs at the district magistrate’s workplace.
North Bengal districts were excused from Wednesday’s in-person conference due to the current natural catastrophe, authorities from Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur, and Malda signed up with by means of video conference, the main mentioned.
Check out: Final electoral roll in Bihar has 7.42 cr citizens, 47 lakh less than pre-SIR duration
Information on Aadhaar and Electoral Roll Issues
The ECI likewise clarified that the Aadhaar card will not be dealt with as evidence of citizenship throughout the Special Intensive Revision, an authorities stated.
The information came throughout the conference, where senior state authorities straight asked the checking out ECI delegation whether Aadhaar might be accepted as a legitimate file for developing citizenship in the continuous SIR workout.
Both Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti and West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal reacted at the conference by mentioning the Supreme Court’s position that Aadhaar serves just as an evidence of identity and not of citizenship.
Authorities likewise raised issues over those whose moms and dads’ names are missing out on from the 2002 electoral roll, which is being utilized as the base year for the confirmation procedure. In such cases, the Commission has actually mandated official queries or hearings to develop eligibility.
PTI
