According to official communication issued by ECI Secretary Pawan Dewan, the expansion will cover major states and territories including Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Telangana, Uttarakhand, and Jammu and Kashmir, among others. The directive follows an earlier nationwide order issued on June 24 last year mandating comprehensive revision of electoral rolls to maintain accuracy.
The SIR process is already underway in 12 states and Union Territories after its initial rollout in Bihar on October 28, 2025. The ongoing phase currently covers about 51 crore voters and involves approximately 5.33 lakh Booth Level Officers and more than 7 lakh Booth Level Agents appointed by political parties.
Under the revision exercise, authorities verify voter details through door-to-door visits, add newly eligible citizens who have turned 18, remove names of deceased or relocated individuals, and correct errors in names, addresses, or photographs. Officials describe the exercise as a routine but essential administrative process designed to ensure electoral rolls remain accurate and credible.
The Commission said such intensive nationwide revisions were regularly conducted between 1951 and 2004 but had not been implemented in the same format for over two decades. Rapid urbanisation, migration for work and education, and demographic shifts have led to duplicate registrations and outdated entries, prompting the need for a fresh verification drive.
Opposition parties, however, have raised concerns over the exercise’s timing and execution. Leaders from parties such as the Indian National Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Trinamool Congress, and Communist Party of India (Marxist) have questioned whether a large-scale verification drive could inadvertently exclude migrant workers or vulnerable groups. They have also called for greater transparency in deletion data and verification procedures.
Election officials maintain that the revision is politically neutral and necessary to safeguard the integrity of voter rolls. They stress that accurate electoral records are fundamental to free and fair elections and say safeguards are in place to prevent wrongful deletions. The nationwide expansion signals one of the largest coordinated voter verification drives in recent years, with authorities aiming to complete updates before major electoral cycles begin.
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