Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty has objected to the move to deploy student volunteers for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls citing disruption to studies.
In a statement here on Tuesday, Mr. Sivankutty said some Revenue officials had sought the services of National Service Scheme (NSS) and National Cadet Corps (NCC) student volunteers for election-related work such as revision of electoral rolls. However, academic activities were on in full swing in schools. Important examinations were also scheduled to be held soon.
Letting students stay away from classrooms for more than 10 days for “data collection and digitisation” was not acceptable, he said.
Though NSS and NCC encouraged participation in extracurricular and social service activities, loss of school hours on instructional days was not right. Deploying students for official work other than that related to educational requirements was a violation of their education rights, he said.
The Minister said officials of the General Education department had been directed to ensure that students’ academic activities were not disrupted.
Meanwhile, Chief Electoral Officer (Kerala) Rathan U. Kelkar said more than 1,700 electoral literacy clubs (ELCs) were functioning in schools and colleges to increase awareness among the youth of the right to vote and familiarise them with processes such as voter registration and polling.
Students of these ELCs, NSS volunteers, and others were coming forward during the SIR. District electoral officers were seeking the support of volunteers to reduce the burden of booth level officers in connection with the SIR. These volunteers would provide support in form distribution and filling up and digitisation. Only those who had time and were volunteering would be included in the process. There were no compulsions on participation, Mr. Kelkar said in a statement.
The CEO lauded the services of ELCs in SIR in Agali, Attappady, and Kozhikode. He added that the State would give away cash awards to be best ELCs on National Voters’ Day.
Regarding reports of the Elathur Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) seeking the services of schoolchildren in SIR, Mr. Kelkar said the ERO had informed him that the objective was to utilise the services of students on a voluntary basis, with permission of their teachers, and without any disruption to their studies.
Moreover, an ELC was functioning in that particular school. It was an opportunity for students to become part of the electoral process, Mr. Kelkar said.
Published – November 25, 2025 09:24 pm IST
