In Jharkhand’s erstwhile Maoist insurgency-hit Tamar, CEC lauds BLOs

OVer a decennary of Left-wing insurgence, pockets of the Tamar assemblage constituency in Jharkhand’s Ranchi territory were virtually untouchable. In 2008, Maoists killed a former legislator and had a chilling effect on the electoral processes. Chief election commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar’s meeting with Tamar’s block-level officers (BLOs) during a three-day visit to Jharkhand to study best electoral practices underlined how the region has come a long way.“I salute and greet those of you [BLOs] working to take the country forward, and I want this to be conveyed to the nation,” said Kumar at a meeting titled “Dialogue with the BLOs of Remote/Inaccessible Areas.” He referred to the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s training programmes for BLOs, who oversee electoral processes at the grassroots level. He said the BLOs of Jharkhand will train other BLOs to foster leadership.Kumar, whose Jharkhand visit concluded over the weekend, lauded BLOs as the foundation of India’s electoral processes. He spoke about further training and the need to enhance their leadershipHT spoke to five BLOs from Tamar, who said they were happy to meet the top election official and discussed issues such as door-to-door surveys, increasing voter turnout, mobile booths, and identifying absent electors. Requesting anonymity, they said they remained concerned about being underpaid. “We do a lot of work, but our honorarium remains ₹7,000 annually [apart from allowances] despite navigating tough terrains. We were directed to stick to the assigned topics, so we did not raise the issue of our inadequate honorarium. If only the CEC had asked us about it,” said one of the BLOs.There are over a million BLOs across the country, including nearly 30,000 in Jharkhand. Electoral registration officers appoint BLOs under the Representation of the People Act. Teachers, panchayat secretaries, and mid-day meal workers are among the suggested 13 categories of employees who can be appointed as BLOs.BLOs play a vital role in the preparation of the electoral roll. They meet elected representatives, coordinate with political representatives, and conduct annual house-to-house visits during the summary electoral roll revision, etc, to identify gaps with a special focus on enrolling young voters.In Jharkhand, BLOs are mostly community health workers and women, with a monthly salary of approximately ₹9,000, which is often delayed.A second BLO, requesting anonymity, said the electoral work is an additional burden without a fair honorarium. “We are happy the CEC visited, but we would have felt some relief if our issues were to be addressed.”An ECI official said the honorarium was enough for the BLOs as they have other jobs. The BLOs also get allowances if they incur any expenditure for election-related work, the official added.