Kolkata, 04 November (H.S.). The first phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, launched by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in West Bengal on Tuesday, has revealed that only 32.06% of the current voters could be traced to the 2002 electoral rolls — the benchmark year for this exercise.

According to a senior official from the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal currently has an estimated 7.66 crore registered voters. So far, fewer than 2.46 crore names have been matched through the ongoing “mapping and matching” process with the 2002 list. The numbers could change as the verification continues.

Under revised guidelines, voters whose own names or those of their parents appear in the 2002 rolls will be considered valid by default. They will only need to submit the filled enumeration form without any additional documentation.

However, voters who do not figure in the 2002 list must furnish at least one approved identification document to establish eligibility. While Aadhaar has been included among acceptable documents, the Commission has clarified that it cannot serve as proof of citizenship or age on its own.

As part of the first SIR phase, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will visit households across the state to collect voter information. A draft electoral roll will be published at the end of this stage.

The second phase will allow political parties and citizens to file claims and objections against the draft rolls. Subsequently, Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) will verify and address all disputes in the third and final phase before publishing the revised electoral rolls.

The entire revision exercise is expected to conclude by March 2026. Notably, West Bengal — along with three other states and one Union Territory — is slated to go to Assembly elections next year.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh