Telangana electoral rolls: 48.88 lakh voters cleared under SIR process
Synopsis
Telangana's massive electoral roll audit has cleared 48.88 lakh voters for inclusion after hearings under the Special Intensive Revision — but over 4.36 lakh notices remain undelivered and nearly 13 lakh cases are still under verification, with the final rolls due on 9 November 2026. The exercise exposed a staggering 73 lakh ASDS entries out of a total electorate of 3.38 crore.
Key Takeaways
48,88,076 voters in Telangana have been cleared for inclusion in the final electoral rolls as of 29 September 2026 .
A total of 92,88,180 notices were issued under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) ; 4,36,007 remain undelivered.
73,39,235 voters — out of 3,38,26,448 — were flagged as ASDS (Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate) .
The last date to file claims and objections is 7 October 2026 ; final rolls will be published on 9 November 2026 .
Voters who fail to respond to notices and appear before EROs or AEROs will not be included in the final roll.
Over 48.88 lakh voters in Telangana have been cleared for inclusion in the final electoral rolls following hearings conducted under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), according to the state's Chief Electoral Officer. The development marks a significant milestone in the state's ongoing voter list overhaul, with final publication of the rolls scheduled for 9 November 2026.
Key Numbers from the SIR Process
Chief Electoral Officer C. Sudharsan Reddy confirmed that as of 29 September 2026, a total of 48,88,076 electors were found eligible for inclusion after hearings before Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs). A total of 92,88,180 notices were generated on account of logical discrepancies and non-mapping of records during the notice and claims-disposal phases of the SIR.
Of these, 88,52,173 notices have been delivered, while 4,36,007 notices remain pending for delivery. Authorities have conducted 61,87,444 hearings so far, and 12,99,368 notices are currently under verification by District Electoral Officers (DEOs).
The Scale of the ASDS Problem
The revision was triggered by a large-scale audit of the voter rolls. Out of 3,38,26,448 total electors, 73,39,235 were identified as ASDS — Absent, Shifted, Dead, or Duplicate. This category includes 57.46 lakh voters who had permanently shifted or were found absent, 9.22 lakh deceased voters, and 6.70 lakh voters enrolled at multiple locations.
Separately, 60 lakh voters were issued notices for discrepancies in names, family details, or age entries, while another 32 lakh electors were identified as 'unmapped' — those who could not be linked to the 2002 rolls, the baseline electoral record.
Revised SIR Schedule and Deadlines
Under the revised SIR schedule, electors have until 7 October 2026 to file claims and objections. The notice phase and disposal of claims will continue until 5 November, with the final electoral rolls to be published on 9 November 2026. The Election Commission of India had published the draft voter list on 17 August 2026 following a door-to-door enumeration exercise.
Electors who received notices must respond, submit the required documents, and appear before the EROs or AEROs. Those who fail to complete this process will not be considered for inclusion in the final rolls.
What This Means for Voters
The SIR exercise is among the most extensive electoral roll audits Telangana has undertaken, with over 92 lakh notices issued — a figure that exceeds one-quarter of the total registered electorate. Notably, this is a direct consequence of significant demographic mobility in the state, with large numbers of voters having shifted residence, passed away, or registered multiple times across constituencies.
Election officials are racing against the 9 November publication deadline, and the roughly 4.36 lakh undelivered notices and 12.99 lakh cases still under DEO verification represent the primary remaining risk to the final roll's completeness. With the deadline for objections just over a week away, the pace of resolution will be closely watched.
Point of View
Shifted, dead, or duplicate, which, if left uncorrected, would have systematically distorted both turnout statistics and constituency-level representation. The 4.36 lakh undelivered notices are a quiet but important data point: in close contests, even a fraction of that number can swing results. The Election Commission's credibility now rests on whether the 9 November publication delivers a roll that is leaner, cleaner, and verifiably accurate — not just numerically large.
NationPress
29 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Telangana?
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a large-scale audit of Telangana's voter list initiated by the Election Commission, involving door-to-door enumeration and the issuance of notices to voters with discrepancies or those flagged as absent, shifted, dead, or duplicate. The aim is to clean up the rolls before the final publication scheduled for 9 November 2026.
How many voters were cleared for inclusion in Telangana's final electoral rolls?
As of 29 September 2026, a total of 48,88,076 voters were found eligible and cleared for inclusion following hearings before Electoral Registration Officers. This follows the processing of over 61.87 lakh hearings conducted under the SIR.
What does ASDS mean in the context of Telangana's voter list?
ASDS stands for Absent, Shifted, Dead, or Duplicate — a classification used by election authorities to flag voters whose entries require verification or deletion. In Telangana, 73,39,235 voters out of 3,38,26,448 were identified as ASDS, including 57.46 lakh who had shifted or were absent, 9.22 lakh deceased, and 6.70 lakh with duplicate registrations.
What is the deadline to file objections in Telangana's SIR process?
The last date for filing claims and objections under the revised SIR schedule is 7 October 2026. The notice and disposal phase will continue until 5 November 2026, after which the final electoral rolls will be published on 9 November 2026.
What happens to voters who do not respond to the SIR notices?
Voters who received notices but fail to respond, submit required documents, and appear before Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) or Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) will not be considered for inclusion in the final electoral roll.
