GHMC drops 94 unqualified BLOs in Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation removed 94 booth-level officers (BLOs) after finding that they did not meet minimum educational qualifications and lacked technical awareness for voter list work.
Untrained staff assigned key election duties
As part of the Special Summary Revision (SSR) of electoral rolls, GHMC appointed sanitation workers and other staff as BLOs despite their not having passed Class 10. Election Commission guidelines require teachers, revenue staff, or local government employees with basic training to be assigned such roles.
Across 4,062 polling stations in 15 Assembly constituencies of Hyderabad district, 94 BLOs were found to be underqualified. Complaints emerged that the survey process was not being conducted properly due to lack of awareness.
Survey issues surface in field operations
BLOs are required to verify details of 1,200–1,500 voters in each polling booth area through door-to-door visits and upload data via a mobile application. However, several personnel struggled with data collection, voter list verification, and app-based mapping.
In one incident in Barkas, a BLO failed to explain voter mapping and admitted he was a sanitation worker, triggering criticism. Videos of such instances went viral on social media.
Authorities respond after public criticism
Following criticism, GHMC’s election wing decided on Wednesday to remove the 94 BLOs without minimum qualifications and assign responsibilities to new personnel.
Officials said the field verification began ahead of schedule to avoid pressure after the formal SSR notification. However, the process drew objections in the Old City, where political party representatives were reportedly accompanying BLOs during visits.
