Nagpur: With Special Intensive Revision (SIR) entering its final fortnight, district administration has begun encouraging voters in several polling areas to visit designated facilitation centres, schools and community halls instead of waiting only for repeated door-to-door visits by booth level officers (BLOs). Officials clarified that the arrangement is part of the ongoing exercise and is aimed at improving coverage as the July 29 deadline approaches.According to senior district election officials, nearly 60% of the Enumeration Forms have now been distributed, while over 15% have been digitised. The administration said both physical collection and digitisation are now progressing simultaneously, with greater emphasis on ensuring that completed forms enter the digital system without delay.“There is nothing unusual about BLOs functioning from designated locations and asking electors to visit them. They continue with door-to-door visits, but are also authorised to operate from facilitation centres such as schools and community halls, where voters can collect or submit Enumeration Forms and get their queries resolved. The administration also organised special facilitation camps at schools, temple halls and community halls across the district last weekend, with another round of camps scheduled this weekend,” a senior district election official told TOI.The administration is simultaneously addressing manpower challenges that have surfaced during the month-long exercise. Officials said several employees initially assigned to assist BLOs are no longer available due to transfers, retirement or leave. As a result, each assembly constituency currently has only around 30 to 35 support personnel assisting field teams, and efforts are underway to deploy additional staff from other govt departments wherever required.Another challenge has been navigating localities unfamiliar to some BLOs. Sources from the dept said some BLOs are employees who were recently posted in Nagpur or are working in the city despite being natives of other districts. Since they are unfamiliar with several localities, locating households has become more time-consuming in certain areas. The administration is, therefore, coordinating with local officials familiar with the neighbourhoods to help field teams navigate and identify addresses more efficiently.With just 15 days left, officials said public participation would be critical to ensure every eligible elector is covered before the July 29 deadline.Deputy district election officer Rachna Indurkar urged citizens to make best use of the remaining days of the exercise. The SIR began on June 30 and will continue till July 29. The draft electoral roll will be published on Aug 5, followed by the claims and objections period till Sept 4. Hearings will continue till Oct 3, while the final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on Oct 7.
