The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced a series of measures to facilitate electors during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, including home visits by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) for collecting documents from persons whose entries are unmapped or have logical discrepancies.

According to information from the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Nagaland, BLOs will visit the homes of such electors who have been issued notices, collect the required documents and upload them on ECINET for consideration and decision by the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs). The electors will generally not be required to visit ERO/AERO offices for hearings.

The ECI has stated that hearings will be required only in exceptional cases, as decided by the EROs/AEROs, and should preferably be conducted online. Where a hearing is required, an adult member of the elector’s family may be authorised to attend on the elector’s behalf.

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The Commission has also directed District Election Officers to establish adequate Help Desks and organise Special Camps, wherever required, to assist people living in night shelters, labourers, poor and homeless persons and others who may require assistance during the SIR process. The CEO Nagaland website has made available district-wise Help Desk contact numbers.

In States and Union Territories where the SIR has already been completed, the Commission has decided to conduct a special drive under continuous updation of electoral rolls for enrolment of left-out electors and young and first-time eligible voters.

The Commission has further clarified that the Declaration Form attached with Form 6 will be used only during the SIR period. During the non-SIR period, the forms prescribed under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 will continue to be used.

The measures are aimed at making the SIR process more accessible to electors and reducing the need for vulnerable or otherwise affected voters to make repeated visits to election offices. The ECI has reiterated the objective of ensuring that eligible citizens are not left out of the electoral rolls while maintaining the integrity of the electoral roll.