Kolkata, 07 January (H.S.): In a significant step related to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in West Bengal, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has sought suggestions from all District Magistrates and District Electoral Officers on how to further simplify the technological applications being used in the revision process.

Sources in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer said the move is driven by two key factors. The first is feedback from a section of District Electoral Officers who have complained that some of the technological applications introduced during the revision exercise are complex and not user-friendly. According to them, field-level officials such as Electoral Registration Officers, Assistant Electoral Registration Officers and Booth-Level Officers are facing difficulties while operating these applications.

The second factor is the allegations raised by the Trinamool Congress and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who have claimed that the use of technology and artificial intelligence during the SIR is aimed at deliberately removing the names of genuine voters from the final electoral roll. The Chief Minister recently alleged that the mobile application being used for the revision exercise was developed by the information technology cell of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Sources in the CEO’s office said senior officials of the Election Commission have assured the District Magistrates and District Electoral Officers that their suggestions on simplifying the technological applications will be implemented as far as possible. The Commission believes that simplifying the technology will make the hearing process for voters identified under the “logical discrepancy” category smoother and faster.

According to officials, the hearing process for “unmapped” voters is almost complete. Following this, the process of serving notices to voters identified as “logical discrepancy” cases began on Tuesday. The hearings for these cases are scheduled to start from January 13.

The final electoral roll for West Bengal is set to be published on February 14. With less than a month available, the Election Commission faces the challenge of completing hearings for all “logical discrepancy” cases within a tight timeline. The Commission aims to ensure that the process remains transparent, time-bound and citizen-friendly, so that no genuine voter faces unnecessary inconvenience.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh