Six BLOs Die During MP’s SIR Drive

• Six Booth Level Officers died during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision in Madhya Pradesh.
• BLOs report extreme work pressure, long hours and server failures.
• Several officers hospitalised with heart attacks and brain haemorrhages.
• Employees’ union seeks ₹15 lakh compensation and medical support from the Election Commission.

GG News Bureau
Bhopal, 25th Nov: The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Madhya Pradesh has taken a tragic turn, with two more Booth Level Officers (BLOs) dying this week, raising the death toll to six in just 10 days. The month-long exercise, which began on November 4 across all 230 assembly constituencies, involves the digitisation of voter forms for 5.74 crore electors.

A total of 65,014 BLOs have been deployed statewide, including 2,029 in Bhopal. However, only 37% of SIR forms have been uploaded so far, leaving 63% of the workload pending with just 10 days remaining. Tight deadlines, slow servers and repeated warnings from officials have intensified panic among field workers.

In Shahdol, 54-year-old BLO Maniram Napit collapsed seconds after receiving a call about pending targets. In Narmadapuram, Assistant Teacher Sujan Singh Raghuvanshi died after being hit by a train while returning from duty.
In Mandideep, BLO Ramakant Pandey suffered a fatal heart attack shortly after an online review meeting. Jhabua’s BLO Bhuvan Singh Chauhan, recently suspended for alleged negligence, died of cardiac arrest, with his family blaming stress.
In Damoh, BLO Sitaram Gond died during treatment after falling severely ill on duty. In Balaghat, 50-year-old BLO and Anganwadi worker Anita Nageshwar died in a Nagpur hospital; her family alleges severe work pressure.

Several BLOs in different districts have been hospitalised with heart attacks, brain haemorrhages and other complications. Families say the relentless workload, long hours and fear of suspension are pushing the officers to the brink. Cases include Bhopal BLOs Kirti Kaushal and Mohammad Laiq, both of whom collapsed on duty; Rewa’s Vijay Pandey, who suffered a brain haemorrhage while working with fever; and Bhind teacher Ravindra Shakya, who suffered a heart attack after being allegedly forced to work from morning till late night.

The Madhya Pradesh Third Class Employees Union has written to the Chief Election Commissioner demanding ₹15 lakh compensation for families of the deceased, similar to benefits available during polling duty under 2019 guidelines. The union also sought free medical treatment for BLOs injured or taken ill during SIR duty.

Calling the workload “immense and unrealistic,” Union General Secretary Umashankar Tiwari warned that the ongoing pressure, combined with technical glitches and strict monitoring, has created a dangerous environment for thousands of officers.

“Many BLOs are working from early morning till late night, some despite serious pre-existing conditions. People are falling ill, and people are dying. Immediate intervention is needed,” he said.