New Delhi, May 28: The Election Commission of India (ECI) today commenced the eighth batch of training for Booth Level Officer (BLO) Supervisors at the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM), New Delhi.
An official spokesperson said this marks the largest batch to date, with 373 participants from four states — Uttar Pradesh (118), Madhya Pradesh (130), Chhattisgarh (96), and Haryana (29).
Addressing the gathering, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar emphasised the critical role of grassroots officials in upholding the sanctity of the electoral process.
He said that such training initiatives are vital to ensure elections are conducted strictly in accordance with the Representation of the People Acts of 1950 and 1951, the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, and the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, along with the latest directives issued by the ECI.
Highlighting the legal provisions related to electoral rolls, the CEC encouraged BLOs and Supervisors to acquaint themselves with the first and second appeal procedures under Section 24(a) and 24(b) of the RP Act, 1950, involving the District Magistrates/Executive Magistrates and the Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) respectively. He urged officials to also educate voters about these mechanisms during field verifications.
It is noteworthy that no appeals were filed from Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh following the completion of the Special Summary Revision (SSR) exercise held between January 6 and 10, 2025 — an indication of increased voter awareness and efficient field-level verification.
The ongoing training aims to strengthen field officials’ understanding of voter registration procedures, effective form handling, and field implementation of electoral norms. Participants are also being trained in IT-based tools and will undergo technical sessions on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs), and mock poll exercises.
With this batch, the ECI has trained over 3,720 field-level election personnel in New Delhi in the past two months, as part of its continued commitment to professionalising election management in India.