In Kol, elderly get a knock from BLOs for home hearing
Times of India | 30 December 2025
Kolkata: Chandraboti Mandal (83) witnessed a hearing for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) on Sunday evening at her Hatibagan residence after she, among other elderly citizens, received hearing notices for "data mismatch".
Mandal, who was five when India gained Independence and seven when the Indian Constitution came into effect on Jan 26, 1950, said she had been well informed about the SIR process since it began. On the very first day, when Sudipta Modok, the booth level officer (BLO), went to distribute enumeration forms at her Hatibagan residence, she welcomed her, saying, "I have a very faint memory of Independence; now I am experiencing the SIR process too."
The BLO, along with the AERO and the supervisor, reached her Hatibagan residence on Sunday evening to complete the hearing. Her name was missing from the 2002 SIR roll; as a result, when her documents were uploaded, it showed "data not found".
Speaking to TOI, Mandal said, "The entire process was very smooth, and I enjoyed it. The people who came to my house were also very nice, and I told them to come again." She said she could not remember the last SIR process in 2002, but remembered the Indo-China war, when she served injured patients at Medical College. "I served so many people across my professional career that I couldn't even count," she added.
Angsuman Mandal, her son, said, "My mother is well informed about the process. I showed all her documents to the AERO, and it went smoothly."
Modok said, "She was very cooperative throughout the process and never felt disturbed, even though I had to visit her residence multiple times and speak to her. The entire family was very cooperative. This time too, when we were leaving her room, she asked us to come again and chat with her."
Soroj Kumar Das (89), another elderly resident born in 1936, had his hearing at his Shyambazar residence on Monday evening. The hearing was held because he was born before Independence. He expressed his anxiety to the EC officials when they entered his room: "I am feeling tense because you are late; I am concerned about it." After the hearing was over, he sang ‘Khandana-Bhava Bandana', an arati song of the Ramakrishna Mission, playing the synthesizer.
Archana Das (85), a resident of Durgacharan Mitra Street, also appeared before the hearing panel on Monday evening at her home. Her son said she was unable to walk properly but was well informed about the process. She signed the documents herself but did not utter a single word.