In the wake of tragic deaths among poll officials, the Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer has issued crucial directives to district authorities, urging them to ensure a stress-free work environment for ground staff. This comes even as the mammoth task of digitising voter forms under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) crosses a significant milestone in the state.
Directive to DEOs: Prioritise Well-being Over Deadlines
Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Navdeep Rinwa on Sunday instructed all District Election Officers (DEOs) to ensure that their staff, particularly the Booth Level Officers (BLOs), are not subjected to any unnecessary mental pressure or rushed to meet deadlines. He emphasised that adequate time is available to finish the remaining work.
The CEO's order explicitly states that any BLO who is lagging behind for genuine reasons must be provided proper support and assistance to complete their tasks smoothly. This significant intervention follows reports of deaths of several BLOs, most of which have been allegedly linked to the stress of SIR-related work.
A Grim Backdrop: Deaths Linked to Work Stress
The CEO's instructions are set against a sombre backdrop of fatalities among the electoral workforce. The latest incident was reported from Moradabad, where a 42-year-old BLO, Sarvesh Singh, was found dead at his home. Police indicated that a purported suicide note cited stress from "not being able to meet the SIR-related targets on time due to lack of proper guidance."
In a separate incident in Bijnor district, a 56-year-old woman BLO died of a cardiac arrest on Saturday night. Her husband stated that while she was a diabetes patient and had been unwell, she had continued working late into Friday night, uploading SIR forms online.
Rapid Progress in SIR Digitisation Work
Amid these concerns, the CEO provided an update on the progress of the SIR exercise. He stated that the work of digitising enumeration forms is progressing rapidly across Uttar Pradesh. More than 10.75 crore forms have already been digitised, which accounts for nearly 70 per cent of the total voters in the state.
"The BLOs have also completed the digitisation process at 9,177 polling stations so far, marking a significant step toward finalizing the electoral roll," Rinwa added. This extensive digitisation drive is part of the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision, which has deviated from the usual annual update process and is being conducted afresh.
The Election Commission of India has recently extended the deadline for submitting SIR enumeration forms to December 11 in 12 states and Union Territories. The draft electoral roll is now scheduled for publication on December 16, with the final roll to be released on February 14, 2026.
