Joint Chief Electoral Officer Manohar Parkar appealed to eligible citizens to cooperate with the election machinery by completing the enumeration process within the revised timeline to ensure their names are included in the electoral roll.

The extension follows repeated demands from opposition parties and public representatives, who argued that incessant rains had severely slowed the ongoing house-to-house verification drive.

The verification exercise, which began on June 30, was hit by widespread waterlogging, transport disruptions and power outages, particularly in Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, affecting BLO visits. The process also faced resistance from government and aided school teachers, many of whom are serving as BLOs while continuing their regular teaching duties.

Official data shows the exercise has progressed slowly. As of July 17, only 35.16 per cent of Enumeration Forms (EFs) had been digitised across Maharashtra. The pace has been particularly sluggish in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, with Mumbai Suburban at 8.38 per cent, Thane at 8.41 per cent, Mumbai City at 15.36 per cent, and Palghar at 14.2 per cent.

Mumbai’s City and Suburban districts together have around 10,000 BLOs, each responsible for verifying 900-1,200 voters. BLOs are required to distribute enumeration forms, verify voter details, obtain signatures and upload the forms digitally. If a voter is unavailable, they must make at least three visits before the voter can be marked under the ASDD (Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate) category.