Bengal Releases Rs 61 Crore for Electoral Roll Revision

MP, Dec 2025, Kolkata: The state government has released Rs 61 crore under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) fund, through which the Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office will pay a portion of the remuneration to Booth Level Officers (BLOs). According to sources in the Commission, each BLO will receive Rs 4,000. There are 95,000 BLOs in the state engaged in the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls. They had earlier received Rs 2,000 each as the first instalment of their total remuneration.

Data from the state CEO’s office show that 56.29 lakh forms across the state are uncollectible, including 23.98 lakh dead voters. Another 19.64 lakh electors have permanently shifted, 10.94 lakh are untraceable, and over 1.32 lakh have been identified as duplicate voters.

As of Monday, over 2.5 lakh forms in the state are yet to be digitised. Of the 7.66 lakh forms already distributed, 7.63 lakh have been digitised — accounting for 99.64 per cent. The CEO’s office has flagged certain districts where uncollected forms are not being uploaded by BLOs despite clear instructions.

Special Roll Observer Subrata Gupta, during field visits to several districts, expressed dissatisfaction over the performance of a section of BLOs. It is learnt that some political leaders have advised BLOs to upload forms only on the last date, December 11. Gupta has travelled to the Commission’s headquarters in Delhi to report his findings.

State CEO Manoj Agarwal has directed District Electoral Officers (DEOs) to hold camps — including in old-age homes, red-light areas, widow centres, and clusters for persons with disabilities — to ensure that no legitimate voter is left out of the rolls.

“Earlier, similar instructions were given and acted upon. With December 11 being the last date for distributing and uploading enumeration forms, the emphasis has been strengthened,” Agarwal said. The CEO’s office will hold special assistance camps in three wards in Kolkata, including Sonagachi, Asia’s largest sex workers’ hub, after complaints that many workers cannot trace records from 2002, a mandatory requirement under the SIR process. Commission officials will hear the concerns and assist those facing documentation issues. The State CEO will visit these camps to supervise the exercise.