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A BLO in Bengal, Zakir Hossain Haque, died late Thursday night after suffering a heart attack while uploading enumeration forms for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). Hossain, assigned to BLO No. 14 and serving at Digha Primary School under Jhli Gram Panchayat in Khargram in Murshidabad district, has blamed intense SIR-related work pressure for his death.
The deceased complained of acute cardiac pain on Thursday when he was immediately rushed to the hospital. However, his condition deteriorated during commute and he was declared dead on being brought to the hospital.
“My father started coughing intensely on Thursday night. He also complained of severe chest pain. He was under a lot of pressure due to his current work-related issues,” Haque’s son said.
Haque, who was a resident of Jhli Gram Panchayat under Khargram Police Station, had reportedly been under “tremendous mental pressure” for several days owing to persistent server-related issues in the SIR exercise that hindered the timely uploading of official forms, his family informed.
“He was a simple man. He never liked complicated stuff. The moment he was put on BLO duty he was under tremendous pressure. He used to be restless due to the n-number of calls day and night. He used to tell me that he was tensed about his work. He was unable to sleep during nights,” said Mumtaz Khatoon, bereaved wife of Haque. Zakir Hussain Haque had also reached out to his neighbours to share his concerns about SIR-related issues.
Following the incident, panic spread among the residents of the village. On Friday morning, Khargram MLA Ashish Marjit visited the residence of the deceased to offer his condolences. The MLA expressed strong concern, stating that excessive workload and unresolved server problems had contributed to the mental strain experienced by Zakir Hossain.
