One crore SIR enumeration forms distributed in first 7 days of exercise: J’khand CEO

Ranchi, Jul 6 (PTI) Over one crore voters out of Jharkhand’s 2.64 crore electorate have received enumeration forms under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the first seven days of the exercise, an official said on Monday. The enumeration phase in the state began on June 30 and will continue till July 29, during which booth-level officers (BLOs) will conduct house-to-house visits to distribute, collect and verify enumeration forms. "In the first week of the exercise, BLOs have successfully reached out to 39.73 per cent of the total electorate, accounting for 1,05,13,490 voters, where enumeration forms were made available to eligible Indian citizens through door-to-door visits," Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) K Ravi Kumar said in a press statement. He said the SIR of the electoral rolls is a completely participatory process, and desired success cannot be achieved without everyone’s participation. "Active cooperation and participation from all recognised political parties are expected in this campaign to prepare a pure, transparent and error-free voter list," Kumar said. The CEO said booth-level agents (BLA)-2 appointed by recognised political parties could submit up to 50 voters’ enumeration forms every day to the respective BLOs, excluding voters belonging to five specified categories – absent, shifted, dead, duplicate and those who refused to sign (foreigner). He said the enumeration forms collected by BLA-2s and BLOs during the SIR would be verified by the BLO and the BLO supervisor as per the prescribed rules before being digitised. Kumar said the mapping carried out during the previous SIR had been treated as a superior document. "Voters whose mapping has been completed will generally not need to submit any other type of document. BLOs must ensure voters get their mapping done as much as possible during their house-to-house visits," he added. The draft electoral rolls will be published on August 5, following which claims and objections can be filed till September 4. The claims and objections will be disposed of between August 5 and October 3, while the final electoral rolls will be published on October 7. As a precursor to the enumeration exercise, parental mapping of 82.08 per cent of the state’s 2.64 crore electors with the 2003 electoral rolls has been completed, the CEO said. PTI SAN SAN MNB