India SIR poll workers deaths have mounted to over a dozen since the Special Intensive Revision began on 4 November 2025. Booth-level officers in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and West Bengal bear the brunt. Families cite suicides and heart attacks tied to 14-15-hour shifts. The Election Commission of India extended the process to 11 December 2025. The Supreme Court orders added staff to ease the load. Workers report app failures and threats of job loss.
These deaths expose cracks in India’s electoral machinery. The SIR aims to update rolls for 51 crore voters in 12 states and union territories. Yet BLO overwork conditions India-wide strain grassroots staff, mostly teachers and clerks. In Uttar Pradesh alone, eight workers died in 10 days, including three suicides. This crisis threatens fair elections and highlights labour burdens on public servants. Delays in payments and digitisation fuel exhaustion. As India nears the 2026 polls, such strains risk eroding trust in the world’s largest democracy. South Asia watches, where similar revisions in Pakistan and Bangladesh faced fewer fatalities but shared staffing woes.
BLO Overwork Conditions India: Daily Strains Mount
Booth-level officers handle door-to-door verifications for over 500 million voters. They distribute forms, check documents, and upload data via apps. Many juggle this with full-time jobs. Shifts stretch to 14-15 hours daily, with no days off since November. Workers use their personal mobile phones and funds for travel.
Manisha Kumari, a school teacher in Noida’s residential complex, said she tracks absentees during brief breaks. “Any short break I get is spent tracking down people who were not at home when I first visited,” she told BBC Hindi. App crashes force uploads past midnight. Sunil Singh, another BLO, faces health warnings ignored by officials. “My doctor has asked me to take rest, but these officials won’t listen. The only way to get leave is to be admitted to the hospital.”
In West Bengal, protests erupted outside the Kolkata CEO’s office on 2 December 2025. Workers broke barricades, demanding extensions. BJP delegations joined, citing payment delays from past cycles. The state digitized 95.24 percent of forms by November 30, 2025, according to Election Commission data. Uttar Pradesh lags at 69.56 per cent, amplifying pressure.
Teachers comprise 70 percent of BLOs, according to 2023 government estimates. Schools suffer as classes halt. An Allahabad High Court ruling in February 2025 recommended using non-teaching staff first, but shortages persist. FIRs against 60 BLOs in Noida for “negligence” add fear. Two teachers have been suspended; one faces charges after the BJP filed a complaint.
The Election Commission doubled the pay of BLOs to INR 12,000 from INR 6,000. Supervisors get INR 18,000, plus INR 6,000 incentives. Yet many await funds. “We have not received payments,” said a Gujarat BLO anonymously. States like Kerala offer extras, but uniformity is lacking.
Poll Worker Suicides Uttar Pradesh: Three Cases in Week
Uttar Pradesh reports eight deaths of India SIR poll workers since 25 November 2025. Three involve suicides, per family accounts and police notes. The state covers 15 crore voters, the highest load.
Sarvesh Kumar, 46, an assistant teacher from Moradabad, died on November 30, 2025. A video surfaced hours earlier. “I have not been able to sleep for 20 days. If I had time, I would have finished this work,” he said, seeking family forgiveness. A three-page note blamed SIR targets and upload failures. The police recovered it, addressed to the District Basic Education Officer. Sudhir Kumar Kori, 27, an accountant, took his life on 28 November 2025 in Fatehpur. He sought leave for his wedding but faced reprimands. “Threats of dismissal broke him,” his brother told the media. A note cited superior pressure.
Vipin Yadav, 35, from Gonda, consumed poison on 28 November 2025. His wife recorded a video: “Officials’ pressure led to this.” He served as BLO for 1,200 voters.
Other fatalities include heart attacks. Shobha Rani, 56, collapsed in Bijnor after an illness and overtime. Sarvesh Kumar Gangwar, 47, from Bareilly, suffered cardiac arrest on 26 November 2025. Vijay Kumar Verma, 40, in Lucknow, died of a brain haemorrhage. Ranju Dubey, 44, in Deoria, had a heart attack. A Sambhal headmaster joined the toll on December 2, 2025, according to reports in The Times of India. Families link all to SIR stress. The Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Office issued no response by 4:35 p.m. on Monday, August 25, 2025.
Nationwide, media cite six suicides across five states: Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan. The Diplomat reported 41 SIR-linked deaths in 27 days by 4 December 2025. Unions claim undercounts, alleging cover-ups.
Election Commission SIR Extension: Measures Fall Short
The Election Commission launched SIR Phase II on November 4, 2025, to map eligible voters and remove duplicates. It covers Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. By 9 December 2025, 99.97 percent of 50.95 crore forms had been distributed. Digitization reached 99.2 percent, according to an ECI tweet. Uttar Pradesh trails, slowing the national pace.
On 30 November 2025, the ECI extended the deadlines to 11 December 2025 for the rest of India and to 18 December for Kerala. “Amid reports of BLO stress,” The Hindu noted. No direct causation admitted.
In a Supreme Court affidavit, the ECI called the opposition’s claims “false, exaggerated, and politically motivated.” It blamed West Bengal for prior delays. ECI ignored BBC queries on deaths. The Supreme Court directed the deployment of extra staff on 2 December 2025, capping daily hours at 10. Tamil Nadu anganwadi workers petitioned against threats of punishment.
ECI’s X posts praise BLOs, such as Sheena in Ernakulam, Kerala, for their efforts in conducting house visits. “Salute to BLOs,” one read on 9 December 2025. Daily updates track forms, but silence on welfare. Opposition parties, including Congress, demanded halts. “Inhuman pressure,” they said. BJP defends SIR as “patriotic” for electoral purity.
A 2003 guideline cited by ADR notes past revisions spanned six months, unlike this 37-day rush.
Background: SIR’s Roots and Past Strains
India’s last nationwide SIR ran from 2002 to 2003 over six months. The 2025 version responds to the 2024 Supreme Court orders on voter accuracy following the Lok Sabha polls. BLOs, introduced in 2007, manage 1,200 voters each. Pay rose from INR 5,000 in 2019, but inflation erodes value. A 2023 PLFS report showed 58.2 per cent worker participation, yet public sector strains persist.
In 2019, BLO protests in Bihar led to minor tweaks. This cycle’s scale—51 crore voters—outweighs prior expectations.
Complaints Regarding India SIR Poll Workers Deaths
Unions filed NHRC complaints on 29 November 2025, citing heart attacks and suicides. The Hindu reported Mumbai’s plea. ECI must release welfare data by January 2026, per activists. States eye 2026 assembly polls; clean rolls matter. The Supreme Court may hear extensions on December 15, 2025. Workers demand 8-hour caps, app fixes, and timely pay.
India’s SIR poll workers’ deaths underscore the human cost of democracy’s upkeep. Reforms could prevent repeats.
Published in SouthAsianDesk, December 10th, 2025
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