Inside the Life of Booth Level Officers: Balancing Election Duties, Teaching, and Family Responsibilities

The morning begins at 6:30 AM for Karuna Aggarwal, a government school teacher currently serving as a Booth Level Officer (BLO) in Noida. Before her official duties commence, she must first fulfill her responsibilities as a mother, preparing her two children for school by 7:30 AM. With merely half an hour remaining, she quickly readies herself, has a brief breakfast, and heads out to the field.

Noida, also known as Gautam Buddha Nagar district, is one of 75 districts participating in the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) to review voter lists. Karuna represents one of 5.3 lakh BLOs deployed across 12 states, functioning as frontline workers tasked with purging voter lists of errors and duplications. These states encompass approximately 50.8 crore electors, with each BLO responsible for processing documents and forms for roughly 1,000 voters.

In recent weeks, BLOs have gained unfortunate attention due to reports of suicides linked to work stress and fear of disciplinary actions. These tragic incidents have sparked political controversies and calls to suspend the SIR initiative.

To gain insight into the SIR workload realities, NDTV accompanied Karuna for a day in Noida, observing BLO operations, challenges, and the mental health impact of their high-pressure responsibilities.

BLOs typically begin fieldwork around 9 AM, with each officer managing up to 1,200 voters. Karuna's list contains 706 names. Her day starts in Noida's Sector 30, conducting door-to-door visits to collect completed enumeration forms.

Afterward, she proceeds to her designated booth where voters arrive either to obtain and complete forms or to submit already filled ones. Karuna attentively assists both groups.

Balancing her roles as a mother, teacher, and BLO presents significant challenges. Serving as a BLO since 2016, she teaches at a Nithari village school when not performing election duties. "Teaching follows a structured format, while BLO work demands more time and carries greater pressure," she explains.

Thousands of BLOs across India follow similar routines: morning home visits, form distribution, collection, and subsequently uploading completed information to the Election Commission's online portal.

BLOs face numerous challenges, including locating voters at registered addresses. Karuna notes, "Often voters have relocated or addresses contain errors. We waste hours trying to find the correct individuals."

Administrative pressure compounds these difficulties. At Noida's Sector 92 command center, two exhausted BLOs share their experience: "We were summoned from our booth with threats of official notices, only to wait two hours without accomplishing anything. It's now 3 PM and our day is wasted."

Many BLOs report that training sessions inadequately prepared them for field realities. Voters frequently receive inconsistent instructions regarding form completion requirements.

Information gaps affect both BLOs and voters. Citizens struggle with locating old documents while BLOs spend extra time repeatedly explaining requirements.

Despite the Election Commission's seven-day extension of the SIR deadline, BLOs believe this relief came too late. "Most BLOs had only completed about 60% of their assignments by late November. Earlier deadline extensions might have prevented fatalities," Karuna observes.

The SIR initiative has severely impacted educational institutions. At Karuna's Nithari school, 16 teachers serve as BLOs, effectively halting regular instruction. Students attend school, receive mid-day meals, but receive minimal education.

Principal Vibha Devi, approaching retirement next year, expresses frustration: "Every teacher is performing BLO duties. No one remains to teach. Mornings involve school administration; afternoons are spent collecting forms door-to-door. With eight days remaining, I've only completed 60% of my work. Managing both responsibilities is impossible."

A sixth-grade student confirms: "Classes haven't been held for many days. Sometimes there's one session, sometimes none. Mostly, we play."

Karuna suggests: "Earlier winter vacation declaration would have allowed teachers to focus on SIR without compromising children's education."

Despite immense pressure, BLOs persevere. According to Election Commission data as of December 3, 48.4 crore forms—94.5% of the total—have been submitted and uploaded.

Supervisor Manoj Dubey, who manages nine BLOs, views their work as national service: "Despite increased workloads for BLOs and district officials, we will meet our deadlines."

Most voters support the SIR process in principle but acknowledge challenges stemming from rushed timelines and awareness deficiencies.

While the Election Commission has modified the SIR process following Bihar's experience, ground realities suggest further adjustments may be necessary—changes that balance voter convenience with the wellbeing of BLOs who ensure every eligible citizen participates in India's democratic process.