As part of the Summary Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across nine states and three Union Territories, the Election Commission has laid out a clear procedure for voters to ensure their names are correctly included in the final electoral roll. Voters are advised to keep all essential documents ready and follow a few key steps when the booth-level officer (BLO) visits their homes for verification.
To ease the process, voters must keep with them their Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC), Aadhaar card, two passport-size photographs, and a reference from the last SIR roll if their names, or those of their parents or grandparents, appeared in it. Those whose names are missing from the previous roll may later be required to furnish additional citizenship documents from among the eleven indicative proofs listed by the Election Commission to validate their eligibility.
Each BLO visiting households will carry an official identity card featuring a QR code that can be scanned through the Election Commission’s website for authentication. The enumeration forms provided by the officer will contain their name and phone number, allowing residents to confirm their identity. The officers may also be accompanied by booth-level agents (BLAs) nominated by political parties, given the politically sensitive nature of the exercise.
During the visit, the BLO will hand over two identical enumeration forms for every voter in the family. Each voter is required to fill both forms in duplicate, sign them, and return them to the BLO for countersignature. One copy will be retained for official records while the other, duly stamped, will be given back to the voter as an acknowledgement for future reference.
The enumeration form itself is a simple one-page document divided into two parts. The upper portion seeks basic details of the voter based on the current EPIC, while the lower section is divided into two boxes. The box on the left is meant for those whose names appeared in the last SIR roll, and the box on the right for those whose names did not, but whose parents’ or grandparents’ names did. It is important that voters reproduce the exact spellings and relationship details from the earlier record, even if previous errors had been corrected subsequently.
If a voter or their family members are not at home when the BLO visits, the officer will make up to three visits to ensure every eligible person is covered. Family members present at home can fill out and sign forms for those away temporarily, provided they possess the required documents and can answer any subsequent verification queries.
The door-to-door enumeration will continue till December 4, after which the draft rolls will be published on December 9. Claims and objections will be received until January 8, with hearings and verification scheduled through January 31. The final electoral rolls are expected to be published on February 7, marking the completion of an extensive revision process designed to update and authenticate the voter database before next year’s elections.