The Election Commission of India (ECI) has extended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) schedule by one week across 12 States/UTs. Find the crucial revised Voter List Update deadlines, including the new date for form submission (December 11) and the Final Voter List Publication date of February 14, 2026.
ECI Special Intensive Revision (SIR) Schedule Extension Deadline Voter List
In a significant administrative move impacting millions of citizens across the country, the Election Commission of India has announced a revised schedule for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls, extending the overall timeline by one full week. This crucial decision affects nine states and three Union Territories where the large-scale Voter List Update exercise is underway, with January 1, 2026, serving as the qualifying date for voter eligibility.
The extension comes amid mounting concerns and political representations regarding the tight timeframe initially allotted for the complex and ground-intensive Enumeration Period. While theBElection Commission of India did not cite a single specific reason in its official statement, the decision is widely attributed to challenges faced by Booth Level Officers (BLOs), who reported immense workload pressure, and logistical hurdles exacerbated by heavy rains in coastal states like Tamil Nadu. This seven-day extension provides vital relief to both the administrative machinery and the electorate, ensuring more comprehensive Voter Enrolment.
The Special Intensive Revision is no ordinary process. Unlike the routine annual summary revision, the SIR aims to thoroughly clean the electoral rolls by addressing decades of “legacy data” issues, including the deletion of deceased or permanently shifted voters and the removal of duplicate entries. The exercise requires the meticulous work of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to physically verify voter details, often collecting pre-filled enumeration forms directly from citizens.
The extension is not merely an administrative courtesy; it possesses significant political implications. The SIR exercise, which targets major states including West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu, has already become a major Political Controversy, with opposition parties questioning its timing and methodology. The extended period now provides political parties and civil society groups with extra time to monitor the process, check the initial draft roll, and file legitimate claims and objections, thereby enhancing the transparency of the entire Electoral Process.
