Kolkata, 26 July (H.S.): The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, Manoj Agarwal is considering relocating the CEO office from its current location at Balmarlawrie Building. Sources confirmed that the current office space is insufficient to accommodate the expanding operations of the department. In this regard, the CEO's office has already written to State Chief Secretary Manoj Pant, seeking necessary intervention for the relocation.
The move comes at a time when curiosity around the possible Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list is growing across the state. With the recent increase in honorariums for Booth Level Officers (BLOs), special training programmes have already begun. On Saturday, a BLO training session was held at Kolkata’s Nazrul Mancha, where CEO Manoj Agarwal himself was present.
Addressing the media about the proposed office relocation, Agarwal confirmed that a letter had been sent to the Chief Secretary and the department is eager to shift to a more suitable space. While questions have been raised about whether this relocation is related to the anticipated SIR, the CEO refrained from making any direct comment on that.
A few days ago, the Election Commission of India had instructed the West Bengal CEO office to be declared an “independent office” without delay. Now, with talks of the office being shifted within Kolkata, speculation around administrative and electoral restructuring has intensified. An official from the CEO’s office mentioned that with the increase in staff strength, the current premises are facing parking and operational constraints, thus necessitating the move.
Meanwhile, BLO training sessions are continuing statewide in preparation for upcoming electoral duties. After sessions in East Burdwan on Friday and Kolkata on Saturday, the next training is scheduled in Medinipur on Sunday, followed by Jalpaiguri on July 28. Sources indicate that the special revision of the voter list may begin in August.
Facing the media on Saturday, CEO Manoj Agarwal assured, “We will train every BLO. We are fully prepared.” He clarified,
“SIR is something that has to be done, it’s not new. It has happened multiple times before. Our training syllabus will cover everything. However, the training isn’t solely because of SIR.”
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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
