The Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal Manoj Kumar Agarwal addresses the media on November 24, 2025. Photograph Credit score: Moyurie Som
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal Manoj Kumar Agarwal on Monday (November 24, 2025) mentioned that he met with officers of the Ministry of Telecom and representatives of all telecom service suppliers to make sure uninterrupted web connectivity for the digitization of enumeration types by booth-level officers in the course of the Particular Intensive Revision for West Bengal’s electoral roll.
This comes within the wake of a piece of BLOs elevating considerations across the unavailability of high-speed web needed for the digitization technique of enumeration types. Disgruntled BLOs additionally claimed that the duty of digitizing hundreds of enumeration types via the BLO cell app has added to their mounting workload, and has turn out to be particularly unmanageable for the older BLOs who aren’t technologically savvy.
“Connectivity points could be there in just a few locations for just a few hours or few days however the issue is not there for the entire time to come back. The black zones are only a few in quantity. Now we have advised the block growth officers and district election officers that centralized areas could be there with wi-fi connectivity. Many individuals can sit collectively and do the digitization work there,” he mentioned.
On Monday (November 24, 2025), Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar elevating questions on why the CEO’s workplace floated a Request for Proposal for hiring 1,000 information entry operators and 50 software program builders for a interval of 1 12 months.
“When district workplaces have already got a considerable variety of competent professionals performing such features, what necessitates the CEO’s initiative to outsource the identical work via an exterior company for a full 12 months?” the Chief Minister requested in her letter.
This assumes significance in mild of calls for raised by a piece of BLOs for the appointment of knowledge entry operators to digitize all enumeration types by December 4 amid complaints of the workload turning into untenable alongside their common jobs and door-to-door visits for SIR.
On Monday (November 24, 2025), a whole lot of BLOs gathered outdoors the CEO’s workplace to protest amid heavy police deployment within the space.
“It’s a coverage resolution of the Election Fee of India to not use contractual information entry operators. It was solely on the recommendation of ECI the tender was taken out, in resonance with the tender as taken out in Bihar, and it has been despatched to the finance division for approval. All of the due course of has been maintained,” Mr Agarwal mentioned on Monday.
He added that 14,997 new polling cubicles are getting ready to approval and that the identical variety of further BLOs have been mobilized for a similar.
As of now, 80,681 BLOs are working for an equal variety of polling cubicles throughout 294 meeting constituencies. Every polling sales space roughly has 950 to 1000 electors.
‘Uncollectable types’
The CEO additional mentioned that any type that’s not obtained by election officers signed by the elector will likely be deleted from the draft roll. As of 4 pm on November 24, 10.33 lakh enumeration types haven’t been collected by electors.
“This is applicable to instances the place the electors have completely shifted or are absent. We’re going by the deal with as of October 27, 2025. If the deal with or constructing would not exist, the BLO goes thrice and checks with locals and booth-level brokers. When there is not any scope in any respect, they turn out to be ‘uncollectable’,” Mr. Agarwal mentioned, responding to a query by The Hindu,
He added that the names of electors whose names had been on the voters record as of October 27 this 12 months however could be lacking from the draft roll throughout SIR on grounds of not gathering the enumeration type, will likely be divided into 4 to 5 classes and revealed within the public area.
“So if anyone (can’t discover their) identify within the draft record, they will make an enchantment or criticism or change their particulars after the draft roll is revealed,” the CEO mentioned.
Printed – November 25, 2025 04:23 am IST