KOLKATA: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday directed West Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Manoj Agarwal, to immediately begin preparations for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state, which heads to polls next year.
This comes against the backdrop of a month-long SIR exercise in Bihar ahead of upcoming elections, which has drawn criticism from opposition parties alleging it will lead to "mass exclusion" of voters and is intended to "benefit" the ruling NDA government.
Following the ECI’s directive, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held a meeting with all district magistrates at Nabanna, the state’s administrative headquarters. Senior bureaucrats of the West Bengal government also attended the meeting.
In a written communication to Agarwal, the ECI asked him to appoint booth-level officers (BLOs) and supervisory booth-level officers, and to submit a list of their names to the Commission. The poll body clarified that only permanent government employees may be appointed as BLOs.
It also directed the CEO to provide a list of booth-level agents (BLAs) representing various political parties. The CEO is expected to write to the parties on Friday, requesting the names of their BLAs.
"The BLOs and BLAs will visit every voter’s residence and explain what SIR is, why it is important and how it should be carried out. If the BLOs fail to fulfil their duties and responsibilities properly, the BLAs will bring the matter to the notice of the ECI," a source in the state CEO office told TNIE.
Meanwhile, during her meeting with district magistrates, Banerjee instructed them to continue implementing government programmes even during the Durga Puja holidays.
She had recently announced a new initiative titled 'Our Neighbourhood, Our Solution', which is scheduled to begin on Saturday. The programme aims to deliver government services and solutions at the booth level. Camps under the initiative will be held from 2 August to 3 November.
According to sources, district magistrates were shown a video presentation detailing how to organise the camps, receive complaints, and resolve issues raised by residents.