Kolkata, Nov 20 (IANS) After the suicide of a female Booth Level Officer (BLO) due to the alleged workload of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal, another woman BLO has suffered a cerebral attack in the middle of the exercise ordered by the Election Commission of India.
According to the police, the BLO was admitted to hospital in a critical condition in Hooghly district’s Konnagar after she suffered a cerebral attack in the middle of work.
The BLO identified as Tapati Biswas suffered the attack while distributing the SIR forms on Wednesday afternoon, said the police on Thursday. The left side of her body is numb and she is currently undergoing treatment at the Konnagar Municipality Hospital.
The police said, Tapati Biswas, 60, is an Anganwadi worker and resident of Nabagram of Konnagar Municipality. She was working as a BLO of Booth No. 279 of the Uttarpara Assembly constituency.
Her husband Prabir Biswas complained that she was tired of distributing enumeration forms, collecting the filled up forms, scanning the QR code and uploading them online. She was unable to sleep almost the whole night due to the workload and the pressure. She was also getting frequent calls from higher authorities to submit the forms fast.
“Enumeration forms for 1,160 people were distributed at that booth. There are still 45 left. She was unwell, so I told her not to work anymore as the BLO. She said she wouldn’t have a job if she didn’t complete the distribution of the forms. She was also working under mental stress as she was also getting frequent calls from higher authorities to submit the forms. She suffered a cerebral attack yesterday in the middle of work,” said the husband.
Tapati has a daughter and her husband Prabir was a worker at Hastings Jute Mill in Serampore. He is currently retired.
The development comes after a female BLO died by suicide due to alleged work pressure during the SIR exercise in the state.
The incident took place in Mal Bazar area in Jalpaiguri district of north Bengal. The family of the woman alleged that she decided to end her life as she could not bear the pressure of SIR work.
Following the incident, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee yesteray lambasted the Election Commission over the suicide of a female BLO.
Using her social media handles, Banerjee claimed that about 28 people have died in the state since the Election Commission began the SIR of Bengal’s electoral rolls.
The West Bengal Chief Minister also asked the Election Commission to halt this “unplanned drive” to save lives in the state.
–IANS
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