The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday began the enumeration phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 12 States and Union Territories, marking one of the largest voter clean-up exercises in recent years.
The exercise, which began on November 4, will cover approximately 51 crore voters across Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep.
The process is scheduled to continue until December 4, followed by the publication of draft rolls on December 9. Citizens will then have time to file claims and objections from December 9 to January 8, with hearings and verifications continuing till January 31. The final electoral rolls will be released on February 7.
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Lessons from Bihar
The ECI launched a pilot phase of this clean-up earlier this year in Bihar, during which over 68 lakh names were deleted from the voter list after verification. Building on that experience, the Commission has introduced several reforms in the ongoing SIR 2.0 process.
One of the key changes is that enumerators will not collect any documents from voters during this phase. The poll body made this decision after finding that most voters could already be traced to earlier rolls, particularly those prepared between 2002 and 2004.
Officials have also implemented a “pre-mapping” process by matching current voter lists with records from previous SIR exercises. This ensures that electors already present in earlier rolls do not need to submit any of the 11 indicative documents.
Aadhaar added, but only for identity
As directed by the Supreme Court, Aadhaar has now been included as the 12th document but strictly as proof of identity, not citizenship.
In a procedural update, enumeration forms now include a column for a parent or relative’s signature if the voter is unavailable, which will be countersigned by the booth-level officer (BLO). BLOs are also authorised to verify unreturned forms by speaking with neighbours to determine if the voter has died or relocated, ensuring the accuracy of deletions.
For transparency, booth-wise lists of unlisted electors will be displayed publicly at Panchayat Bhavans, urban local body offices, and block development offices, along with reasons for non-inclusion.
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Nationwide access and fresh enrolments
In a major improvement, voters can now check their names in rolls from any State in India, rather than being limited to their home State. BLOs will also facilitate new registrations by carrying blank Form 6s and declaration forms for those who are seeking to enroll during the door-to-door enumeration.
With four of the participating States including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, and Puducherry, heading to the polls in 2026, the updated rolls are expected to play a crucial role in ensuring transparent and credible elections.
