ECI launches Special Intensive Revision Phase III across 16 states, 3 UTs
Synopsis
The Election Commission has deployed over 3.94 lakh ground-level officers to knock on doors and verify 36.73 crore voters across 16 states and 3 UTs in Phase III of its Special Intensive Revision drive — the most sweeping phase yet of a nationwide effort to purge ghost entries and ensure only eligible names make it onto India's electoral rolls.
Key Takeaways
The Election Commission of India (ECI) launched Phase III of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) on 14 May , covering 16 states and 3 Union Territories .
More than 3.94 lakh Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will conduct door-to-door verification of approximately 36.73 crore electors .
Around 3.42 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) nominated by political parties will assist the BLOs.
The first two phases covered 59 crore electors across 13 states and UTs , with over 6.3 lakh BLOs and 9.2 lakh BLAs engaged.
Himachal Pradesh , Jammu and Kashmir , and Ladakh are excluded from Phase III; their schedule will be announced separately.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar urged all eligible voters to fill Enumeration Forms and participate in the process.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday, 14 May announced the rollout of Phase III of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 16 states and three Union Territories, marking what officials describe as the most expansive phase yet of a nationwide voter list cleanup exercise. The Commission said the drive is aimed at strengthening the accuracy and transparency of India's electoral rolls ahead of future elections.
Phase III Scope and Schedule
According to the ECI, the Phase III schedule was finalised keeping in view the availability of field machinery currently engaged in ongoing census house-listing operations. With Phase III now underway, the SIR exercise will effectively cover the entire country, with the exception of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. The Commission said the schedule for these three regions will be announced separately, after accounting for the completion of Phase II of the census exercise and weather-related challenges in upper reaches and snow-bound areas.
Scale of the Enumeration Drive
The on-ground exercise is substantial in scale. More than 3.94 lakh Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will conduct door-to-door verification of approximately 36.73 crore electors during the Enumeration Phase. They will be supported by around 3.42 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) nominated by recognised political parties. The ECI described the SIR as a 'participative and transparent exercise' involving electors, political parties, and election officials at multiple levels.
What the Earlier Phases Covered
The first two phases of the SIR, conducted across 13 states and Union Territories, covered nearly 59 crore electors as on the date of issuance of the respective SIR orders. More than 6.3 lakh BLOs and 9.2 lakh BLAs were engaged across various stages of those phases. Phase III now adds to that cumulative reach, extending the revision drive to the remaining states and UTs in the phased sequence.
What the Commission Said
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, speaking at the launch of Phase III, appealed directly to voters. “I appeal to all electors to enthusiastically participate in Phase III of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and fill their Enumeration Forms. SIR is being conducted with the objective to ensure that — Only Eligible voters to be included in the Electoral Roll and No Ineligible names to be included,” he said. The Commission also urged all recognised political parties to appoint Booth Level Agents for every polling booth to ensure transparency, inclusiveness, and effective scrutiny during the revision process.
Objective: Cleaner, Error-Free Voter Lists
Officials said the intensive revision exercise is aimed at identifying and removing duplicate, shifted, deceased, or otherwise ineligible entries from voter lists, while simultaneously facilitating the inclusion of all eligible voters. This comes amid longstanding concerns about the accuracy of India's electoral rolls, which have periodically faced scrutiny over ghost entries and unverified inclusions. Notably, this is one of the largest simultaneous BLO deployments in recent electoral history. The Commission is expected to publish revised rolls after the enumeration and claims-and-objections process concludes across all phases.
Point of View
Yet its credibility will hinge on what happens after the door-to-door phase — specifically, how objections are processed and whether deletions are independently verifiable. The exclusion of Jammu and Kashmir, a politically sensitive region with its own assembly election history, is framed as logistical, but will attract scrutiny. More broadly, the sheer scale of BLO deployment raises a legitimate question: with field machinery simultaneously running census house-listing operations, can dual-duty officers give either exercise the rigour it demands? The Commission's insistence on political party BLA participation is the right instinct, but only meaningful if parties in all 16 states actually fill those booth-level slots.
NationPress
7 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls?
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a large-scale exercise by the Election Commission of India to clean up and update voter lists by identifying and removing duplicate, deceased, shifted, or ineligible entries while adding all eligible voters. It involves door-to-door verification by Booth Level Officers across the country.
Which states and UTs are covered under SIR Phase III?
Phase III covers 16 states and 3 Union Territories. Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh are excluded from this phase; the ECI has said their schedule will be announced separately after census Phase II concludes and weather conditions in snow-bound areas permit.
How many officials are involved in SIR Phase III?
More than 3.94 lakh Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will conduct door-to-door verification of approximately 36.73 crore electors. They will be supported by around 3.42 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) nominated by recognised political parties.
What did Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar say about SIR Phase III?
CEC Gyanesh Kumar appealed to all electors to participate and fill their Enumeration Forms, stating the objective is to ensure only eligible voters are included and no ineligible names appear on the electoral roll.
How much of the country has SIR covered so far across all phases?
The first two phases covered 59 crore electors across 13 states and Union Territories, with over 6.3 lakh BLOs and 9.2 lakh BLAs engaged. Phase III adds 36.73 crore more electors, effectively extending the exercise to nearly the entire country.
