Crowds, technical glitches mark voter mapping camps in city
Anushka Singh
RANCHI
Special camps organised across Ranchi on June 13 and 14 for voters whose names remain unmapped under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process witnessed heavy footfall, with many citizens reporting technical glitches, documentation hurdles and long waiting times.
At centres such as Pandra Middle School, voters queued for hours to resolve discrepancies in their electoral records. One of the most common concerns related to the voter mapping system’s parent-child matching mechanism. Several voters said that while their voter identity cards carry their spouse’s name, verification often required linkage through parental details available in the electoral database, causing confusion and delays.
Voters also pointed to inconsistencies in the process, claiming that some recently issued voter ID cards had been successfully mapped while older records of family members remained unmapped. In several cases, names of family members were found in different electoral rolls, further complicating verification.
The large turnout led to overcrowding and operational challenges. Many voters complained of long queues, hot weather and the absence of separate counters for different categories of grievances. Some also expressed concern over not receiving immediate acknowledgement after submitting correction requests, leaving them uncertain about the status of their applications.
Migrant families faced additional difficulties as they were asked to provide details from decades-old electoral records, including voter identity cards and booth information from their native states. Many argued that the two-day exercise was insufficient and urged authorities to extend the campaign to allow more time for document collection and verification.
Despite the challenges, voters largely appreciated the efforts of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and supervisors, describing them as cooperative and patient while handling the heavy rush and assisting citizens throughout the exercise.
