Pune: When booth level officer (BLO) Sunita Parate knocked on the door of a family in Parvati’s Janata Vasahat on Tuesday afternoon, it marked more than just another house visit. Within minutes, the anganwadi worker-turned-BLO had verified the details of all five family members, helped them fill their enumeration forms and submitted them to the election officials. She set the tone for the month-long voter verification exercise that got underway across Pune.More than 8,000 BLOs fanned out across the district for the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls. The first day saw a mix of cooperation, curiosity and caution from voters, with some readily completing the process. In contrast, others questioned officials’ identities, sought appointments for later visits or hesitated to share details.Parate, among thousands of anganwadi workers, teachers and other govt employees deployed as BLOs, began her visits in Janata Vasahat area only after checking the weather forecast because of the monsoon.“We have started distributing and collecting enumeration forms,” she told TOI. The first family she visited had already been mapped in the electoral rolls. After verifying their details, she filled the forms and submitted them to her senior officer the same day.For fellow BLO Jayashree Bhaskar, however, the exercise got off to a slower start. She said some residents insisted on seeing her identity card before sharing their details, but she had not yet received one. “I have filled five forms on the first day. Awareness was poor and there was some hesitation. Moreover, many people could not immediately provide details about their kin,” she said.Bhaskar said BLOs have been instructed not to simply hand over the forms but to assist voters in filling them too and collect them on the spot wherever possible. “We sit with the voter and fill up the form. Every household is taking time and we realise people are not yet open about the exercise,” she added.Not every visit resulted in immediate verification. One voter said her BLO called to schedule a visit, but since she was away from home, she fixed an appointment for the weekend.The month-long exercise, which began on Tuesday and will continue till July 29, aims to verify voter details and update electoral rolls ahead of the publication of the draft roll on Aug 5. Across Pune district, more than 8,000 BLOs have been deployed to cover nearly 91 lakh registered electors.Deputy district election officer Minal Kalaskar said over 1.82 crore enumeration forms have been printed for distribution. “The work has started across the district and BLOs have started visiting households,” she said. At the end of the day around 6,345 forms were distributed across the 21 assembly constituencies in Pune district with around 679 forms filled and collected, the data shared by the election office said.She added that the administration expects citizens to cooperate with booth-level officers during the door-to-door verification drive.“Political parties are also expected to appoint booth-level agents (BLAs) to assist the BLOs. We are holding regular meetings with them so that they can help create awareness and encourage people to participate. Resident welfare associations have also been requested to spread awareness about the Special Intensive Revision,” she added.Pushpa Chavan, a resident of Kondhwa, said awareness camps should be organised to help people understand the exercise. “Unless there is cooperation from all stakeholders which include officials, political parties and residents’ welfare associations, the process in urban areas will remain slow. We hope participation improves in the coming days,” she added.During the visits, BLOs will carry two copies of the form. One copy, along with an acknowledgement, will be retained by election officials after it is filled and signed by the elector, while the second copy will remain with the voter for future reference.Officials said electors can also complete and submit the enumeration form online through the Election Commission’s Voters’ Service Portal or the ECINET app before the BLO’s visit and retain the acknowledgement for verification.The Election Commission of India has told voters to cooperate with BLOs during the exercise. If a house is locked, the BLO will leave the form and make at least three visits to collect the completed document. Officials clarified that not every voter will be required to submit supporting documents.Electors whose names were included in rolls prepared after the last intensive revision conducted between 2002 and 2004 may only have to verify their existing details. Documentary proof will be sought only where required.The statewide SIR exercise, with Oct 1, 2026, as the qualifying date, will continue till July 29 for distribution and collection of forms. The draft electoral roll will be published on Aug 5, followed by a month-long period for claims and objections before the final electoral roll is published on Oct 7.
