The ailing and elderly continued to queue up outside SIR hearing camps across the city, walking with support or being bodily lifted into centres, even as the Election Commission said on Monday that hearings for such voters would be conducted at their homes.

Several elderly voters said they had not been informed about the hearing-at-home option. Many others claimed their booth-level officers (BLOs) had told them there was no such provision.

A woman said that when she asked Election Commission officials at a hearing centre in Jadavpur how an unwell person could apply for a home hearing, she was told that relevant medical records would have to be submitted along with the application.

A BLO told Metro on Tuesday evening that they had yet to receive any written instructions regarding home hearings. “There is only word of mouth as of now. People who are 85 or above, or ill or physically challenged, should contact their BLO and follow the advice given by the BLO,” he said.

Swati Roy, 70, had to report to a hearing centre in Mukundapur despite suffering a recent fracture in her spinal cord. Her doctor had advised her complete rest.

Her BLO, she said, had told her there was no option for a home hearing when the notice was served last week.

SIR hearing going on at Aliah University

“My sister suffered a fracture in her spine in November. The doctor has advised her rest,” said Swati’s sister, Runa Roy, 62, who accompanied her.

On Monday, the Election Commission issued detailed guidelines on conducting hearings at home for voters aged 85 or above, expecting mothers and those who are seriously ill. According to the EC, these hearings will be held in the last two weeks of the hearing and verification exercise, which will continue till February 7.

The Roy sisters said they were residents of Jamshedpur in 2002 and had lost several of their documents over the years.

They arrived at Charan Kabi Mukunda Das High School in Mukundapur around 11.45am on Tuesday to attend the hearing.

At the Aliah University campus on Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road, an elderly couple who said they had never missed voting were also called for a hearing.

“My wife and I have voted in every election, yet we have been called,” said Mansur Ahmed Ali, 76. The centre was hosting hearings for parts of the Chowringhee Assembly constituency.

At the Mukundapur centre, 85-year-old Sankar Sarkar struggled to walk as his son, Mangal Sarkar, 45, helped him into and out of the hearing room. A rickshaw waited outside to ferry the octogenarian back home.

“I rarely step out, but I had to come here today. I have voted in so many elections, yet I have been called for the hearing,” Sankar said. “It would have been far easier for my father if the hearing was held at home,” Mangal added.

Long queues were seen outside a hearing centre where hearings for seven parts of the Jadavpur Assembly constituency were being conducted. Some people said they had been waiting since 9am.

“The hearing started around 11.30am,” said a policeman on duty.