Election Commission to Launch First Phase of Pan-India Special Intensive Revision of Voter List
The Election Commission (EC) is poised to begin the first phase of a pan-India special intensive revision (SIR) of voter lists starting next week, covering 10 to 15 states. This rigorous exercise aims to update electoral rolls in states holding assembly elections next year, including Assam, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala, and West Bengal, ensuring voter data accuracy ahead of critical polls.
SIR Rollout and Process Details
The EC plans to announce the initial batch of states selected for the SIR exercise by mid-next week. It will avoid conducting the revision in states where local body elections are ongoing or imminent to prevent overlap with election machinery duties. These other regions will undergo SIR in subsequent phases.
The special intensive revision involves comprehensive field surveys and cross-verification of voter data against previous rolls, with a particular focus on removing deceased, shifted, or bogus entries. Officials emphasise that the main objective is to systematically identify and eliminate foreign illegal migrants from the voter lists by verifying places of birth.
Bihar SIR: A Reference Model
Bihar has already completed its SIR, with the final electoral roll published on September 30, listing nearly 74.2 million voters. The revision process began in June, during which the initial register had 78.9 million entries. After detailed field purges removing absent and invalid entries, the draft list announced in August comprised 72.4 million names.
The final roll shows a net increase of about 1.78 million electors compared to the draft after adding 2.15 million valid names and removing 366,000 ineligible ones. Bihar’s upcoming two-phase assembly election on November 6 and 11 will use these accurate voter lists, with counting scheduled for November 14.
National Preparedness and Importance
The EC has facilitated two major conferences with state Chief Electoral Officers to finalise the SIR implementation plan and ensure coordinated preparedness. Many states continue to rely on voter lists from the 2002-2004 period, highlighting the urgency for a thorough nationwide revision.
This SIR exercise is critical in the current political climate, especially amid crackdowns on illegal migrants from neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Myanmar. Ensuring clean and updated voter registers is fundamental to maintaining the integrity of elections and upholding democratic processes.
