Bengal likely next for voter list revision as EC gears up for phased SIR rollout: Report

After completing the electoral roll revision in Bihar, the Election Commission of India (ECI) is likely to launch a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal starting November 1, as per a News18 report. District Election Officers (DEOs) have been put on high alert, with instructions to be ready for an immediate rollout. 

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal has instructed all District Magistrates to begin preparations without delay. This directive follows a recent review meeting with the ECI. Starting today, the CEO’s office will operate 24/7, with all SIR-related personnel required to be present on duty. 

Each DEO and Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) must set up dedicated help desks to handle SIR queries. A multi-party meeting will follow the official SIR announcement—convened by the CEO at the state level and District Magistrates at the district level. All deliberations and resolutions will be reported back to the Commission. 

Meanwhile, the ECI this week evaluated progress in mapping current electors against previous voter lists across states. The goal is to identify how many voters from the last SIR still remain on the rolls. 

As in Bihar, voters will not need to submit documents — only semi-filled enumeration forms. The ECI believes this mapping exercise could eliminate the need for documents for more than half the electorate in several states. 

The Commission also reviewed the appointment and training status of DEOs, EROs, booth-level officers, and political party-appointed booth agents. 

This marks the second national-level review meeting since September, as the Commission ramps up for a phased rollout of SIR. States due for assembly polls in 2026 — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry — are expected to be in the first phase. However, states with imminent local body elections will be excluded to avoid logistical overlaps, officials said.