Ranchi: The Election Commission of India on Wednesday published Jharkhand’s draft electoral roll after completing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, with 43.61 lakh (4.36 million) names from the previous voter list excluded at this stage.
According to the Commission, the excluded names include deceased voters, duplicate entries, people who have permanently shifted, untraceable electors and those who did not sign the required enumeration forms.
The Commission clarified that the list released on Wednesday is only a draft electoral roll, and not the final one. Eligible voters whose names are missing can apply for inclusion between August 5 and September 4.
The Special Intensive Revision was carried out across Jharkhand between June 30 and July 29. During the exercise, 2.21 crore out of the state’s 2.64 crore registered voters—around 83.51 per cent of the electorate—submitted their enumeration forms. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) collected the forms through door-to-door verification, while digitally submitted forms were also accepted.
The Election Commission said 43,61,987 names from the earlier electoral roll have not been included in the draft list. The exclusions comprise:
- 4,38,596 duplicate entries
- 7,63,903 deceased voters
- 15,92,194 voters who had permanently shifted
- 14,50,810 untraceable voters
- 1,16,484 individuals who declined to sign their enumeration forms
The Commission assured voters that anyone whose name appeared in the 2026 electoral roll but whose enumeration form could not be submitted for any reason still has an opportunity to seek inclusion. Such eligible electors can submit Form 6 along with the required declaration between August 5 and September 4.
Voters can check whether their names appear in the draft electoral roll through the Chief Electoral Officer’s website, the Voters’ Portal, the ECINet mobile application or by visiting their respective polling stations.
Along with the draft electoral roll, the Commission has also published the ASDD (Absent, Shifted, Dead and Duplicate) list, which specifies the reasons for excluding each name.
The revision exercise involved officials from all 24 districts of the state, including 81 Electoral Registration Officers, 29,571 Booth Level Officers (BLOs), an equal number of volunteers and 77,430 Booth Level Agents representing various political parties.
To improve voter access, the Commission has also established 2,389 new polling stations, increasing the total number of polling booths in Jharkhand to 31,892.
The Election Commission emphasised that no voter’s name has been permanently deleted at this stage. Before any deletion is finalised, the concerned individual will receive a notice, be given an opportunity to present their case and the matter will be decided as per the prescribed legal procedure.
The final electoral roll for Jharkhand will be published on October 7 after the completion of the claims and objections process.
With inputs from IANS