Kolkata, Nov 15 : The deadline for distributing enumeration forms the first and crucial stage of West Bengal’s three stage Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has been missed once again, with nearly 22 lakh forms still undelivered across the state.
According to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, around 7.45 crore enumeration forms had been distributed till 6 p.m. on Friday. This accounts for 97% of the state’s 7,66,37,529 electors listed in the electoral roll as of October 27.
The distribution process has already seen two deadline breaches. Initially slated to conclude on November 11, the process fell short with around 15% electorate pending. A revised deadline of November 14 was then set, but the delay persists.
Officials said that nearly 60 lakh voters statewide have been identified as “non-traceable”, meaning booth-level officers (BLOs) could not hand over the forms personally. In such cases, BLOs pasted notices on the doors of these voters, directing them to contact election officials by a specified date. Those who failed to respond have now been marked as non-traceable.
The first stage of the SIR began on November 4, with the entire three-stage revision expected to finish by March 2025. West Bengal last conducted an SIR in 2002.
Voters whose names or their parents’ names were not listed in the 2002 electoral roll must submit any of the 11 identity documents specified by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to retain their names in the updated voter list.