Bhaskar reporter spends a day with a BLO:18 hour duty reveals personal sacrifices, rising stress and relentless workload faced during voter list revision

It is 7 in the morning. Most streets in the city still appear wrapped in sleep, but Aarti Shastri has already stepped out on her black scooter, balancing bundles of files and forms. She is one among the thousands of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) tasked with one of democracy’s most critical grassroots responsibilities—preparing an error-free voter list. Madhya Pradesh launched its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll on November 4. With this, the workload on BLOs has reached its peak; the pressure to meet deadlines, fear of suspension, and constant supervision have pushed them into a difficult struggle to balance their personal and professional lives. To understand what a BLO’s day looks like, the challenges they face, and the reasons behind their rising dissatisfaction, the Dainik Bhaskar team spent an entire day with Aarti Shastri, a BLO and middle school teacher from Sanjeev Nagar, Bhopal. 7:00 AM – The day begins: Knocking on doors before sunrise When we reach Aarti’s house, she is already dressed for duty. She carries copies of Form 6, 7 and 8, the voter list, and a register.
“I have forgotten what family life feels like,” she says with a tired smile. “I leave home at 7 am and return around 11 pm. After that, I still have to upload documents online. I am the only one managing my household since my husband died. Handling both family and BLO duties has become extremely difficult.” We follow her scooter in our car. On the way she tells us that although most forms have been distributed, many residents either aren’t available or show no interest in filling them—forcing BLOs to make repeated visits. 7:30 AM – One door after another Our first stop is house number 102. Aarti knocks, and Tiwari ji steps out. She hands him a form and patiently explains each column—where to write the name, where to attach documents, and where to sign. Tiwari ji looks at us and says, “Madam comes every day. She helps everyone, explains everything. She keeps requesting us to return filled forms, but people don’t take the initiative.” For the next two hours, the routine remains the same—one house to another, lane after lane. Some doors remain shut; some request her to come later. At every doorstep, Aarti appears with the same patience and determination. 10:30 AM – Torn between school duties and BLO work After completing the morning fieldwork, Aarti heads to her school—Government Middle School, Newari. Although the school normally begins at noon, BLO duties require her to reach by 10 am. Today, she is running late. 12:00 PM – Children waiting, BLO queries piling up When we reach the school, children wait in the playground for their teacher. Their faces light up as Aarti arrives. She walks quickly towards her office, but the mid-day meal break begins, so she starts serving food to the children. Even here, BLO work doesn’t stop. Every few minutes, a parent or a resident walks into the school premises with concerns—incorrect names, missing entries, errors in forms, incomplete documents. In less than half an hour, 10–12 people have approached her. Aarti listens calmly, settles queries, and guides them through the paperwork. 1:30 PM – Unable to teach, yet responsible for the class While managing all this, the school day ends. Aarti quickly writes the timetable for the upcoming half-yearly exams on the blackboard.
She couldn’t teach even a single class today—a fact clearly troubling her. 3:00 PM – Back to the field: A flood of issues After school, Aarti’s duties shift again. Now she must collect completed forms.
She stops first at a small office she uses as a temporary SIR workspace. The place resembles a busy government counter—constant footfall and phones ringing nonstop. The most common complaint she hears:
“We can’t find our names in the 2003 voter list.” A frustrated woman says loudly, “Where do we get the 2003 list from? It’s nowhere!”
Aarti responds patiently, “I’ve shared it in the colony’s WhatsApp group. I’ll send it again for your convenience.” Guiding voters through their concerns A senior citizen arrives, visibly anxious, clutching old documents.
“I was in a government job, so I never stayed permanently in Bhopal. After retirement, I settled here. My family’s names are not in the voter list. What should I do?” he asks. Aarti reassures him: Attach your domicile certificate and job documents with the form. This will help during verification. Relief washes over his face. Despite severe back pain for the past two days, Aarti stands, walks, sits, and repeats—never letting her exhaustion reflect in her voice. 7:00 PM – BLOs gather, frustrations surface By evening, other BLOs from nearby areas gather at the same office. Their faces show fatigue mixed with frustration at the system. One BLO, requesting anonymity, says: The biggest problem is that we must visit the main office every evening, get our photo clicked, and wait for the SDM. We work from 7 in the morning but wait till 10–11 at night, and sometimes the officer doesn’t even show up. If we question this, we’re threatened with suspension. Whole Families Forced to Pitch In Archana Sharma, another BLO and PWD employee, arrives with her husband. While she deposits one bundle of forms, her husband carries another. “My children and husband help me every night,” she says. “It’s impossible to manage alone. Our entire family ends up doing BLO work—counting forms and arranging them.” 11:00 PM – Another exhausting day ends, but work doesn’t By the time meetings and reporting conclude, it’s 11 pm.
Aarti heads home, completely drained. But her work is still not over. She must now upload the day’s collected forms online—a task that takes another 1–2 hours. We bid her goodbye and “good luck,” knowing her next day will begin in barely a few hours—with the same grind.