'Just asked for tea and then...': BLO dies in Rajasthan amid SIR workload; family alleges long hours

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In yet another case of death allegedly related to SIR workload, a 42-year-old Booth Level Officer (BLO) died in Rajasthan after he collapsed at his home on Saturday

When he collapsed, he was working on SIR of the voter rolls, police confirmed to the media. The officer was identified as Anuj Gagrg. He was posted in the Gaushala sector of Dholpur city, News18 reported.

Reports said that Garg collapsed at his residence on Saturday night after asking for tea. His family has said that he had been under a lot of stress due to the immense workload related to SIR.

His sister, Vandana Garg, said he had been working late each night to finish uploading voter documents. “He was uploading voter forms even that night. He asked for tea, but before he could drink it, he collapsed,” she said.

Garg was rushed to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival. Nihalganj police and district medical officer Dr. Samerveer Singh visited the home to record statements of the family members on Sunday. A post-mortem examination was conducted later in the day, News18 further said.

Garg, also a teacher at the Government Senior Secondary School in Bara, had joined government service in 2012.

Officials are assessing whether prolonged working hours linked to SIR duties played a role in his sudden death.

In a separate case in Uttar Pradesh, another BLO died on Saturday night under similar circumstances. Shobharani, 56, assigned to booth number 97 in Mohalla Badwan of Bijnor district’s Dhampur area, succumbed to cardiac arrest.

Shobhadevi was a diabetes patient and an Anganwadi worker. Reports said that she had been uploading SIR forms late into the night, her family recalled.

She complained of intense chest pain and was taken to a hospital in Moradabad, where she passed away.

Her husband, Kripal Saini, said preparations for their son’s upcoming wedding had added to her mental strain.

District officials, however, maintained that there was no official pressure on her. District Programme Officer Vimal Chaubey denied allegations of excessive workload, while Sub

Divisional Magistrate Smriti Mishra confirmed that the family informed authorities about her existing medical issues and that she was moved to the hospital as her condition worsened.