ECI's extensive grassroot training programme gathers steam

New Delhi [India], April 9 : A two-day National Training Programme comprising 2 District Election Officers (DEOs), 12 electoral registration officers (EROs) and 217 booth level officers (BLOs) from West Bengal commenced at India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) on Wednesday, the commission said in a release on Wednesday.
According to the release, this initiative forms part of the broader training plan for the capacity augmentation of grassroot election functionaries as envisaged by the Commission during the CEO's Conference held at IIIDEM on March 4.
ECI also concluded a one-day Orientation program for media nodal officers, social media nodal officers, and District Public Relations Officers at the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) in New Delhi on Wednesday.
The orientation aimed to enhance the coordination and preparedness of election officials in an evolving media landscape.
Media Officers from 28 States and 8 UTs participated in the orientation programme which aims to develop an effective communication strategy to ensure proactive information dissemination, counter misinformation, and promote voter awareness through various media platforms, in accordance with the legal framework i.e. the RP Act 1950 & 1951; Registration of Elector Rules 1960, Conduct of Election Rules 1961 and the instructions issued by ECI from time to time, said the release.
In his address, while acknowledging the pivotal role of media as a key stakeholder in the electoral process, emphasised the importance of "factual, timely and transparent communication in upholding the trust of voters in the electoral processes in a digitally mediated information world."
He underlined that media officers must be proactive in communicating accurate information and rise to the challenge of ensuring that voters are correctly informed and empowered to discern facts from narratives without factual basis.
Meanwhile, as per an official release, over 1 lakh BLOs, with an average of one BLO per 10 polling stations, will be trained in such training programmes over the next few years. These well-trained BLOs will form a corps of Assembly Level Master Trainers (ALMTs) to strengthen the entire network of BLOs nationwide. BLOS are the first and most important interface between the 100 Crore electors and the Commission.
The release noted that this unique capacity-building program will continue in phases, focusing first on poll-bound states. Currently, 109 BLOs from Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam, along with 24 EROs and 13 DEOs from Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, and Tamil Nadu, are participating in this two-day residential training programme.
According to the release, "The training is planned to familiarise the BLOs with their roles and responsibilities as per the RP Act 1950, the Registration of Elector Rules 1960, and instructions of the Commission issued from time to time and to equip them with the requirements of filling relevant forms for an error-free updation of electoral rolls. They will be familiarised with IT applications designed to support their work."
The release noted, "BLOs are State Government officials and are appointed by the Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) after the approval of the District Election Officers (DEOs). CEC Gyanesh Kumar while acknowledging the critical role of EROs and BLOs in error free updation of electoral rolls, stressed that the state governments should nominate SDM level or equivalent officers as EROs, who then should appoint BLOs giving due consideration to their seniority and who are ordinary resident of the polling station under their charge."
As per the release, the Chief Election Commissioner underscored that as per Article 326 of the Constitution and Section 20 of the RP Act 1950, only citizens of India who are above 18 years of age and ordinarily resident in the constituency can be registered as electors.
According to the release, he recalled his directions to all CEOs, DEOs, EROs for holding all-party meetings at their respective levels and resolve issues relating to their area of jurisdiction including correct updation of electoral rolls. He also cautioned that any complaint against ERO or BLO will be strictly acted upon. He said that all BLOs should be courteous in their interactions with the electors during house-to-house verification for updation of electoral rolls. He said that the Commission was, is and will always continue to stand with nearly 100 crore electors.