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ECI

New Delhi, November 19, 2025: The Election Commission of India (ECI) is carrying out a massive nationwide exercise to make voter lists accurate and remove fake or duplicate names.

This is called the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

The goal is simple: ensure every real voter can vote, and no fake voter slips in.

The drive has received both appreciation for making elections fairer and criticism from some political parties who fear genuine voters are being removed.

What Exactly Is This Special Intensive Revision (SIR)?

Normally, voter lists are updated once a year in a simple way. SIR is much more thorough:

Election officers go door-to-door in lakhs of areas.
Every household gets a pre-filled form with existing voter details.
People have to check the details and sign. If something looks old or doubtful, they may need to show proof (like an electricity bill or a birth certificate).

This is happening in two big phases and covers more than 51 crore (510 million) voters in 12 states and union territories.

Major states involved: Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and others.

New voter lists will be ready by January–February 2026.

What Is New This Time?

In West Bengal, the ECI is testing AI to spot if the same photo has been used for many voter IDs.
Assam is getting a slightly different process because of its ongoing NRC work. Door-to-door checks start from November 22.
From the next elections, photos of candidates on EVM machines will be in colour (easier to recognise), and voter slips will have bigger, bolder numbers.

What Happened In Bihar (the First Big Test)

Bihar finished this exercise a few weeks ago:

Around 69 lakh doubtful names were removed.
After the cleanup, the recent assembly election saw the highest voter turnout in 70+ years (67%).
Opposition parties complained that many poor and minority voters were deleted on purpose.
The Election Commission says every deletion was checked properly, and very few people complained officially.

Why Is This Important Right Now?

Clean voter lists mean:

No one can add thousands of fake votes.
Real people do not lose their voting rights by mistake.

Many states have elections in 2026–2027, so the ECI wants everything ready and fair.

What Should You Do? (Simple Checklist)

Check if your name is still on the list: Visit voters.eci.gov.in or download the Voter Helpline app.
If your name is missing or details are wrong, file a claim before the deadline (usually early January 2026 in most states).
Linking Aadhaar is completely optional – no one can force you.

This big cleanup shows how seriously India is trying to protect every single genuine vote.

Whether it finally increases trust in elections or creates more arguments will become clear in the coming months.