6 months ago
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As the 2nd signifier of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls gets nether way, it is unclear however the Election Commission of India (ECI) plans to usage the “pre-mapping” workout done by each State earlier the rollout of the gigantic project.
The pre-mapping workout entailed matching successful beforehand electors who were already contiguous successful the elector lists aft the erstwhile SIR with those successful the existent list.
In astir States, the past SIR was conducted betwixt 2002 and 2004, and the existent lists are the ones which are disposable arsenic of October 2025.
In the 2nd phase, SIR is being conducted crossed 12 States and Union Territories, including poll-bound Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and West Bengal. The archetypal signifier was done successful Bihar, which led to the deletion of astir 69 lakh names.
The ECI had — astatine a gathering with the Chief Electoral Officers of each States, held successful the nationalist superior earlier the rollout of the SIR — assessed the mapping already been done by assorted States.
Officials successful the canvass assemblage had said that BLOs would already person this database (voters successful the past SIR), and this would guarantee that astir 60-70% voters would already beryllium covered by the clip the SIR process begins.
Challenges connected the ground
However, things look to beryllium moving retired otherwise connected the ground, with a big of officials from State CEO offices arsenic good arsenic Booth Level Officers saying that voters are themselves expected to capable the Enumeration Forms with details of names figured successful the past SIR, and lone successful cases wherever they were incapable to find their names, the BLOs would assistance them with information from the “pre-mapping”.
“If voters are incapable to find their 2002 details online, the matching workout volition alteration BLOs to pass them whether their names were disposable successful the 2002 list. These details tin past beryllium entered by the voters successful the form,” a elder authoritative successful the Kerala CEO bureau told The Hindu.
Asserting that Kerala could representation 68% of voters successful the 2002 database with the 2025 list, helium said this indicates that the BLOs person compared the 2002 Kerala SIR voters database with the 2025 electoral rolls and person identified a 68% match. “In different words, they person confirmed that a important fig of voters from the 2002 database are already contiguous successful the 2025 list”.
For example, Kerala had 2.24 crore voters successful the 2002 SIR, portion the 2025 electoral rotation has 2.78 crore voters. The BLOs person recovered that 1.7 crore voters from the 2002 database proceed to look successful the 2025 roll. A ample stock of the remaining voters successful the 2025 database are apt to beryllium the children of those listed successful 2002, who were beneath 18 years of property astatine that time, the authoritative said.
Similarly, an authoritative of the Madhya Pradesh CEO bureau said that it is the voters who person to capable retired the details of the past SIR successful their Enumeration Forms, and the BLOs would “verify” the aforesaid earlier digitising the accusation utilizing the “pre-mapping” data.
A BLO from Uttar Pradesh, however, said she was not alert of immoderate pre-mapping exercise, and that it could beryllium due to the fact that her booth comprised of majorly lodging societies that did not beryllium during 2003.
Meanwhile, electors who are looking up their names successful the 2002-04 SIR lists (put up online by the EC) crossed the state are having immoderate trouble uncovering their names, arsenic galore polling booths and, successful immoderate cases, adjacent Assembly segments person changed.
The PDF lists are successful searchable format, but are mostly successful the determination languages of the State, making the hunt process cumbersome.
On Saturday (November 15, 2025), the ECI said that implicit 95% of Enumeration Forms person been distributed crossed the States. The house-to-house enumeration process volition instrumentality spot from November 4 to December 4, and the Draft Rolls volition beryllium published connected December 9.
