Handbook for Electoral Registration Officers - Election Commission ...

ensuring error free entries. For the purpose, the EROs (through BLOs etc) must ensure that themanuscripts of additions, deletions and modifications are being entered timely and correctly. Each BLOshould certify that the corrections made by the ERO in the roll belonging to his/her part of the roll havebeen correctly entered in the database.13. This data-entry work should be undertaken in a secured environment with least disturbance.Care should be taken that no other work is simultaneously going on within the same space as chances ofpapers getting mixed up and errors in data entry will, in that case, increase. So a safe and exclusive spacefor this work should be provided by the ERO/DEO.14. In no case the data and the equipment for data-entry should go out from the custodian control ofthe DEO/ERO. Care should be taken to ensure that no unauthorized copies of the data is made and takenout by the vendors for any unapproved private use.All data entry work should be done under direct supervision and control of ERO or an official authorizedby him in writing. The keys to the premise where the data is being handled shall be in the custody ofthe official. He will be responsible for safety of data. The Commission has issued elaborate guidelines fordata safety and security and it must be strictly adhered to by the ERO. (Annexure 10.1)15. Mistakes and confusion have arisen because of different versions of data being worked upon by thedata entry operators and vendors in the field. Therefore after one revision or photography cycle iscompleted (photography because, for merging the images in photo-electoral roll or for EPIC purposestoo, the database is handled by vendors/data entry operators) the database should be frozen till that workin hand is completed. It implies that once the manuscript updation of database or photo/EPIC mergingworks in the database has started, no work should in parallel go on that will alter the serial number etc ofvoters in the database.16. It also implies that once the data entry work (or the photo/EPIC merging work) is completed, thecentralized data base should be frozen completely. Vendor or any individual worker of the vendorshould not be able to access centralized database without allowing permission again. Extreme care shouldbe taken to keep this database carefully in properly labeled hard disk as a backup and otherelectronic medium because this is the electoral roll.Reports17. After every revision, there is a need to verify the integrity of the data to ensure that it reflectsthe correct administrative and electoral position. For the purpose 10 reports have been prescribed. Theseshould be prepared from the database (by the SLA/CEO) and verified against the actual position in thefield by the DEO/ERO. Any changes made during a revision process should be incorporated in thesereports for being entered into the system at the appropriate place. Therefore during every revisionprocess, the Chief Electoral Officer shall get these reports generated. Reports pertaining to the State as awhole, shall be verified, corrected and updated at the CEO’s level. Reports that pertain to a district, shallbe verified, corrected and updated at the DEO’s level and reports that pertain to assembly constituencies,shall be verified, corrected and updated at the ERO’s level. Any change, should be reflected in all reportsconcerned, for example if new parts have been created it should be reflected in reports related to numberand details of parts.91