With elections for local bodies yet to be announced in Kerala, the Election Commission of India (EC) has kicked off its nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls in the state, according to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
During a press briefing, CEC Gyanesh Kumar explained that one reason SIR is being held in Kerala now is because the notification for local-body elections has not yet been issued in the state. He noted that since the machinery for local elections is not currently engaged, the EC has moved ahead with the SIR process. The SIR will cover Kerala among other states and Union Territories, forming part of the EC’s larger exercise to update electoral rolls.
According to the CEC, once SIR begins in Kerala, voter lists will be frozen and house-to-house enumeration will follow as per the schedule. Voters will be given pre-filled forms and can check their names before finalisation. States must provide resources such as Booth Level Officers (BLOs). The CEC also emphasised that while SIR is underway, the state government’s role remains important in coordinating logistics, but here, the delay in local-body polls has allowed the revision to proceed uninterrupted.
However, the question arises: Will the voter-roll revision process overlap with local election calendars?
{This is a developing story. Please stay tuned with us for the latest updates.}
