Mumbai Teachers Assigned to BLO Election Duties Struggle to Manage Classrooms
Thousands of school teachers across Mumbai, including in Dahisar, Borivali, and Kandivali, have been deployed for voter verification and Booth Level Officer (BLO) duties under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. Educators and administrators reported on June 21, 2026, that the growing burden of these non-teaching election duties is spilling into classrooms and disrupting regular teaching just as the new academic year begins.
The deployment coincides with the reopening of schools across Maharashtra under the state's annual Praveshotsav programme. Instead of settling into classroom routines, many teachers are spending hours verifying voters, attending review meetings, and processing documents for the Election Commission of India.
At Poorna Prajna School in Dahisar, 24 out of the school's 34 teachers have been assigned BLO duties. Principal Arun Dubey expressed concern over the situation, questioning how to operate the school when so many staff members are diverted. Although official orders state that teachers should perform election work after school hours, Dubey noted that regular classes will ultimately suffer.
Similarly, at Chogale Vidyalaya in Borivali, teacher Hemant Mashelkar stated that what was once an occasional assignment has become a continuous, year-round responsibility. Mashelkar warned that engaging large numbers of teachers in non-teaching work directly impacts student learning.
In Kandivali's Janupada, 43-year-old physical education and history teacher Sangram Santode of Matrubhumi Secondary School must travel to Evershine Phase in Thakur Village after school to conduct door-to-door voter verification. Santode, who leaves home at 4 a.m. to teach, spends his evenings knocking on doors. He noted that the exercise is challenging because residents are often wary of sharing personal information due to fears of online scams.
The ongoing deployments have faced resistance. Unaided schools have challenged the teacher deployments in the Bombay High Court. Meanwhile, resentment has grown among government and aided school teachers after FIRs were reportedly filed against those who failed to report for election work. This has led to the formation of the BLO Duty Grievance Redressal Forum, which has gained nearly 500 members protesting the spillover of election duties into weekends and after-school hours.
