The Election Commission of India (ECI) will roll out the third and final phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls after the results of the upcoming Assembly elections are declared on May 4, a senior official said, reported Hindustan Times.
Currently, four states: West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Assam, along with the Union Territory of Puducherry are headed to polls this month. The Commission has decided to focus administrative resources on these elections before proceeding with the nationwide revision exercise.
"The process will now begin only after the declaration of results on May 4, as the Commission wants to ensure full administrative focus and manpower deployment is directed towards the ongoing five-state elections before committing resources to the next phase of the nationwide revision exercise," the official was quoted as saying by HT.
Coverage and scale of the final phase
The final phase will cover 17 states and five Union territories, including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Odisha and Punjab, among others. In total, the exercise will include around 370 million electors, nearly 38 per cent of India's electorate of 977.9 million recorded during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Officials said preparations have already been completed at multiple levels to ensure uniform implementation across states. Once this phase is concluded, the SIR exercise will achieve full national coverage.
Progress so far and key figures
The SIR process began in Bihar in June 2025 and expanded nationwide in October the same year. So far, nearly 600 million electors have been covered across earlier phases.
Among the states where the revision has been completed, West Bengal recorded the highest number of deletions at around 9.1 million names. Tamil Nadu followed with 7.4 million deletions, and Gujarat saw 6.8 million names removed. Bihar reported 4.7 million deletions in its final roll.
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Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh, which saw a draft reduction of 28.9 million names, has yet to publish its final electoral roll, expected on April 10.
"This is the most comprehensive electoral roll revision since 2002," the official said. "The objective is to ensure that electoral rolls remain accurate, free from duplication, and reflective of genuine electors through field verification and statutory processes."
