From the Archives (August 2, 1971): Electoral rolls being made fool-proof

New Delhi, Aug. 1: The Chief Election Commissioner, Mr. S.P. Sen Varma, said here yesterday that the bogus inclusion and wrongful exclusion of names would be eliminated altogether in the new electoral rolls to be finalised in October. He told newsmen that this was possible with the introduction of the electoral card system, unprecedented in the history of election anywhere in the world. He said that about 125 officers and employees of the Election Commission in 35 batches were checking and supervising the revision of electoral rolls in the Union Territory of Delhi. The two Deputy Election Commissioners and the three Secretaries were daily making random checks both in the rural and urban areas. The last date for completing the enumeration work originally fixed for July 31 had been extended to August 15. Supervision by the Election Commission staff had instilled great enthusiasm among the enumerators and the voters, especially in the rural areas. In a particular area which the Chief Election Commissioner did not want to disclose, there were 2,000 bogus names, and in another there was large-scale exclusion of names.