New Delhi, Nov 4 (NationPress) – The Election Commission of India (ECI) has initiated the second phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), a nationwide effort to clean up the voter list, across nine states and three Union Territories (UTs) starting today.

The extensive revision of electoral rolls aims to ensure enhanced accuracy, transparency, and legitimacy within the country’s voter database in preparation for upcoming elections.

This second phase of SIR arrives just two days ahead of the first phase of the Bihar Assembly polls, where a similar revision was recently executed.

In that process, over 68 lakh names were removed from Bihar’s electoral rolls following verification, as the Commission seeks to eliminate duplicate, relocated, or deceased voters.

The current phase of SIR will encompass approximately 51 crore voters in regions such as Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep. Notably, states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, and Puducherry are scheduled for Assembly elections in 2026.

Under the new timetable, the enumeration process kicks off today and will run until December 4, with the draft electoral rolls set to be published on December 9.

Citizens will have the chance to submit claims and objections from December 9 to January 8, 2026, and hearings and verifications are expected to conclude by January 31, 2026. The final electoral rolls will be officially released on February 7, 2026.

During a prior briefing in October, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar praised polling officials and voters in Bihar for the successful completion of the first phase. He stressed the importance of SIR, often referred to as a “purification drive,” in upholding the integrity of electoral rolls.

The CEC pointed out that since India’s independence, there have been eight SIR exercises conducted between 1951 and 2004, with the most recent one occurring over two decades ago. Political parties have consistently urged the Commission to carry out such verifications periodically to ensure that only legitimate voters are included in the democratic process.

Describing the process, the CEC stated that enumeration forms will be printed and distributed throughout all participating states and UTs. Once the process begins, the voters’ lists in those areas will be frozen to facilitate precise updating and verification.