SIR: Commission Postpones SIR Deadline! Relief for BLOs? Check New Schedule
SIR: The Election Commission of India has extended the deadline for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists in 12 states and Union Territories, including West Bengal. Rescheduling the entire process, the commission has pushed back the dates by seven days. A notification was issued on Sunday announcing this new schedule. This decision is expected to bring a sigh of relief to thousands of Booth Level Officers (BLOs), primarily government employees and teachers, who have been under immense pressure.
Why Was the Process Delayed?
Although the Election Commission did not explicitly state a reason for postponing the deadline in its notification, sources suggest that the excessive workload on BLOs played a significant role. Since the commencement of this intensive revision process on November 4, government employees and teachers have been going door-to-door to collect data and upload it online.
There were widespread reports of servers crashing and BLOs falling ill due to the immense pressure. Tragic reports of mental stress and even suicide among BLOs had surfaced from various parts of the state. Amidst demands from various quarters to extend the deadline or pause the process, it is believed that the Commission decided to grant this seven-day extension after considering the ground reality.
New Schedule for Voter List Revision (SIR 2026)
According to the Election Commission’s notification, the timeline for the publication of the 2026 voter list has been restructured. The detailed schedule is provided below:
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Join on Telegram| Activity | New Scheduled Date |
|---|---|
| Last date for form submission & upload | December 11, 2024 |
| Preparation of Draft Voter List | December 12 to December 15, 2024 |
| Publication of Draft Voter List | December 16, 2024 (Tuesday) |
| Period for filing Claims & Objections | December 16 to January 15, 2025 |
| Disposal of claims & hearings | Up to February 7, 2025 |
| Commission’s final permission | By February 10, 2025 |
| Publication of Final Voter List | February 14, 2025 |
Which States Are Affected?
Apart from West Bengal, this revised schedule will be effective in 11 other states and Union Territories. The list includes:
- Gujarat
- Chhattisgarh
- Goa
- Kerala
- Andaman and Nicobar Islands
- Lakshadweep
- Madhya Pradesh
- Puducherry
- Rajasthan
- Tamil Nadu
- Uttar Pradesh
Responsibilities and Challenges of BLOs
Booth Level Officers (BLOs) play a pivotal role in this special revision process. They are responsible for distributing enumeration forms door-to-door, collecting the filled forms, and uploading them to the Commission’s portal. They are assisted in this task by Booth Level Agents (BLAs) of various political parties. However, technical glitches and the pressure to upload massive amounts of data within a short timeframe had left many teachers in a difficult situation. The extension of the deadline gives them an extra seven days to complete the work, which will undoubtedly alleviate some of their stress.
