BHUBANESWAR: Amid the row over the special intensive revision (SIR) of voter rolls in Bihar, the Odisha government is gearing up to undertake the exercise soon.
The statewide SIR will be conducted after a gap of more than two decades. It will involve a thorough, house-to-house verification of voters and rationalisation of polling stations to ensure accurate and inclusive electoral database.
The last SIR in the state was carried out in 2002. Since then, the electoral rolls have undergone annual summary revisions, which do not involve door-to-door verification. The upcoming SIR could be a crucial effort to ensure that no eligible voter is left out, and no ineligible person remains on the rolls, officials said.
As per the mandate of ECI, people whose names were not recorded in the 2002 electoral roll will have to submit documents prescribed by the Commission to establish their eligibility for voter enrolment.
In preparation for the exercise, chief secretary Manoj Ahuja has instructed all departments and district collectors to ensure that no post designated as district election officer (DEO), electoral registration officer (ERO), or assistant electoral registration officer (AERO) is vacant during the revision period. He has also made it clear that no transfers of officers holding these posts would be made without the prior approval of the Election Commission.
The ECI has directed this special revision in all states, including Odisha, following the exercise in Bihar. The SIR process includes house-to-house visits, verification of voter eligibility, rationalisation of polling stations and strengthening of the voter list to eliminate inaccuracies.
Given the scale of the exercise, the state government has been directed by the ECI to extend full support in terms of manpower and logistics. The state officials have been asked to mobilise necessary resources and ensure all pending postings are completed without delay.
The chief secretary has directed that all required posts must be duly filled and the training of officials completed before the field operations begin. “Deputy collectors handling election work will also not be transferred without prior consent from the chief electoral officer (CEO), Odisha. Collectors are directed to mobilise whatever human resources or logistics are required to help the EROs complete the work smoothly,” read the chief secretary’s letter accessed by TNIE.
As per the final roll 2024, Odisha has as many as 3,32,36,360 voters, including 1,68,50,949 men and 1,63,82,031 women. Among the voters, there are 6.8 lakh senior citizens, 9,060 people, aged over 100 years, 4.57 lakh persons with disabilities (PwD) voters, 7.54 lakh voters aged 18-19 years and 3,380 third gender voters.
The electoral roll gender ratio now stands at 972, up from 922 in 2014. The state has 37,809 polling stations with an average of 879 voters per station.