The Election Commission of India (ECI) will launch the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Karnataka, on Tuesday, June 30, as part of a nationwide exercise to update voter lists.
The revision is being carried out in a phased manner across 16 states and three Union Territories, following directions issued by the ECI on May 14. In Karnataka, the house-to-house enumeration will continue until July 29, while the final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on October 7.
What is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR)?
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is an exercise undertaken by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to update electoral rolls by verifying the details of every registered voter through a house-to-house enumeration. Currently, it is being carried out across 16 states and three Union Territories, ahead of the qualifying date of October 1, 2026. The objective is to ensure that the electoral rolls are accurate, up to date and include all eligible voters while identifying entries that require correction or deletion in accordance with the law.
How many voters will be covered?
Addressing a press conference on June 28, Chief Electoral Officer Anbukumar said all preparations for the exercise had been completed. Karnataka has 5,54,32,314 registered electors, all of whom will be covered under the revision. He said 91.61% of voters have already been mapped, while 46,52,504 electors are yet to be covered.
A total of 59,050 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have been trained and deployed across the state. The Election Department has also trained 31 District Election Officers, four Additional District Election Officers, 224 Electoral Registration Officers, 336 Assistant Electoral Registration Officers and 7,556 BLO supervisors. Political parties have appointed 1,15,112 Booth Level Agents, most of whom have also undergone training.
What will BLOs do during the house-to-house visits?
As part of the exercise, BLOs will visit every household in their assigned polling areas and distribute enumeration forms to all electors whose names appeared on the electoral roll as of June 16, 2026. The forms will also be available online through the ECI's voter portal and the ECINET mobile application from June 30.
Election officials said two types of stickers will be used during household visits. A violet square sticker will indicate that an enumeration form has been distributed, while a red circular sticker will indicate that the house was found locked during the visit.
After electors complete and sign the forms, BLOs will collect them for digitisation. Officials said BLOs would make up to three visits, wherever necessary, to ensure every eligible voter has an opportunity to participate in the exercise.
Anbukumar stressed that no documents would be collected during the enumeration phase. "No documents should be given to BLOs," he said, adding that daily updates on the progress of the revision would be issued from June 30 onwards.
He said Karnataka has around 1.88 crore houses and that arrangements have been made to address network and technical issues, including providing Wi-Fi facilities to BLOs in areas with poor connectivity.
Anbukumar also clarified that a family member may sign the enumeration form on behalf of a voter who is abroad or otherwise unavailable. A parent, spouse or sibling, for instance, can sign the form in such cases.
What is the timeline for the revision?
June 30 - House-to-house enumeration begins
July 29 - Enumeration ends
August 5 - Draft electoral roll published
August 5 to September 4 - Claims and objections
Tilll October 3 - Disposal of claims and objections
October 7 - Final electoral roll published
Who is eligible to be registered as a voter?
Under Article 326 of the Constitution, a person must be an Indian citizen, have attained the age of 18 years on or before October 1, 2026, ordinarily reside in the constituency where registration is sought, and not be disqualified under any law to qualify as an elector.
Citizens who have recently become eligible to vote can apply for inclusion in the electoral roll by submitting Form 6 along with the prescribed declaration. Once the draft electoral roll is published, voters can also use Form 6A for overseas voter registration, Form 7 to object to an improper entry or seek deletion of a name, and Form 8 to correct electoral details, change their place of residence within the electoral roll, replace a voter identity card or update their disability status.
The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer has also conducted awareness and orientation programmes for recognised national and state political parties, media organisations and other stakeholders. Public outreach activities, including rallies and prabhat pheris, will be organised at the district and Assembly constituency levels to raise awareness about the revision exercise.
The SIR process has led to scores of complaints in other states with lakhs approaching tribunals in West Bengal alleging they have been disenfranchised.