SIR of electoral rolls in Bengal will be decided by EC: Chief electoral officer

Kolkata: Stating that the decision to conduct a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls lies solely with the Election Commission, West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal on Friday said training of booth-level officers (BLOs) and supervisors will ensure preparedness if the process is initiated.

He said training of the BLOs was an ongoing process, and a similar session would be held in Kolkata on Saturday and in the other districts in the following days.

"The EC has decided to train the officers. Earlier, there was no such training. The poll panel has an institute, IIIDEM, where people have been trained to make them understand the work, their statutory functions," Agarwal said.

According to sources, the CEO held a virtual conference with the BLOs on Friday.

The IAS officer said the training would help if the SIR of electoral rolls was initiated in Bengal.

"If SIR takes place, the training will equip BLOs to carry out their responsibilities effectively. However, the decision rests entirely with the ECI," Agarwal clarified.

"Yesterday, training took place in Malda. Today, it happened in Purba Bardhaman, and tomorrow it will take place in Kolkata. Day after tomorrow, it will take place in Midnapore and on July 28 in Jalpaiguri," he added.

The ongoing SIR of voters' list in Bihar has created a political row, with the opposition INDIA bloc alleging the move aims to delete a large number of voters.