Jharkhand's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is facing a significant backlog, with 22.84 lakh voter records still unverified as of 4 November 2026 — just 26 days before the process is scheduled to conclude. Of the 59.53 lakh total cases flagged under the 'No Mapping' and 'Logical Discrepancy' categories, only 36.69 lakh have been resolved so far, raising concerns about the Election Commission's ability to meet the deadline.

Scale of the Pending Backlog

According to data released by Jharkhand Chief Electoral Officer K. Ravi Kumar, the 'No Mapping' category had 14,04,033 cases in total. Of these, only 6,08,618 — or 43.35 per cent — have been disposed of and updated on the ECINet portal, leaving 7,95,415 cases unresolved. The 'Logical Discrepancy' category fares somewhat better: out of 45,49,961 cases, 30,61,159 (67.28 per cent) have been cleared, but 14,88,802 remain pending.

What These Categories Mean

Under the 'No Mapping' category, election authorities verify records of voters whose names — or those of their family members — could not be linked to the 2003 electoral roll. This is a critical step in weeding out ghost entries or unverifiable additions to the voter list. 'Logical Discrepancy' cases, on the other hand, involve scrutiny of inconsistencies between old and current voter records — such as abnormal age gaps between parents and children, or mismatches in declared family relationships.

District-wise Performance: Sharp Contrasts

The district-level picture reveals stark disparities. In the 'No Mapping' category, West Singhbhum leads the state with a disposal rate of 96.16 per cent, followed by Lohardaga (80.04 per cent), Deoghar (75.25 per cent), Ramgarh (63.19 per cent), and Gumla (61.01 per cent). At the other end, Giridih (19.52 per cent), Sahibganj (21.03 per cent), Palamu (25.25 per cent), Pakur (28.86 per cent), and Ranchi (29.03 per cent) have made the least progress. In the 'Logical Discrepancy' category, West Singhbhum (99.72 per cent) and Lohardaga (99.08 per cent) top the rankings, while Pakur (45.88 per cent), Sahibganj (48.57 per cent), Palamu (49.55 per cent), Ranchi (52.02 per cent), and Garhwa (54.63 per cent) are among the weakest performers.

One Bright Spot: 'Other Category' Near Complete

Not all the news is grim. The state has made strong progress in what officials term the 'Other Category', completing 97.91 per cent of the work. Out of 1.61 crore cases in this segment, 1.58 crore have already been processed and updated on ECINet. Lohardaga has achieved 100 per cent completion here, with West Singhbhum, Deoghar, Chatra, and Khunti also recording near-total completion rates.

Election Commission's Directive to Lagging Districts

Chief Electoral Officer K. Ravi Kumar has directed all districts with low disposal rates to accelerate verification immediately. He has instructed district election officials to conduct regular reviews and roll out special action plans to complete pending hearings and verification work before the SIR deadline. With a large volume of unresolved cases concentrated in districts like Ranchi, Palamu, and Sahibganj, the coming weeks will be critical for the credibility of the final electoral roll.