CHENNAI: To showcase transparency in the enumeration process under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the Tamil Nadu Election Department has uploaded details of the fieldwork carried out by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and Booth Level Agents (BLAs) on its website.
When the process began, BLOs’ work drew criticism from various quarters, including political parties. Several leaders questioned the qualifications of some BLOs, pointing out that anganwadi workers and mosquito control staff of the Greater Chennai Corporation were among those deployed.
Despite the criticism, the BLOs completed the exercise, which resulted in the deletion of around 97 lakh voters from the electoral rolls in Tamil Nadu. Following this, the Election Department, which is overseeing the SIR, decided to place the details in public domain to demonstrate transparency.
Members of the public can access the information on the Election Department’s website (https://erolls.tn.gov.in/asd). Details uploaded include polling station-wise data on voters categorised as deceased or permanently shifted. The prescribed forms containing particulars of voters listed as Absent, Shifted, Dead and Deleted, duly approved by recognised political parties’ Booth Level Agents, have also been made available.
Additionally, objections raised by BLAs against the deletion of voters’ names by BLOs have been reflected in the transparency section of the portal. “Even if names have been deleted, voters can now know the reasons for rejection and also view the fieldwork carried out by BLOs. People can check the status of their voting rights and access the ASD list if their names were deleted under the ‘Absent’ or ‘Shifted’ categories,” an Election Department official said.