Very soon, the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Jharkhand is going to commence by the Election Commission of India (ECI), and this has made voters in the entire state look alert and prepare necessary documents. The exercise will be conducted to maintain a proper list of voters that is accurate, updated and free of errors before the upcoming elections.
Officials in the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) office report that arrangements on the SIR process in Jharkhand are almost complete, and the official announcement will be made soon. When it is started, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will embark on massive verification drives, which will entail house-to-house verification to ensure that voter details are checked and the electoral roll updated.
The Special Intensive Revision is a major exercise that is periodically conducted by the Election Commission to include eligible new names and remove the names of the deceased or migrating individuals, as well as duplicate or erroneous entries. This is particularly so to ensure that there is transparency and equity during elections.
In the SIR drive, voters can be requested to check their personal information like name, age, address and family details. Individuals whose names do not appear in the previous electoral rolls (especially the 2003 voter list) might need to provide supporting documents in order to prove eligibility.
The officers have recommended that the voters should have documents like birth certificates, school or matriculation certificates, domicile or residence certificates, caste certificates (where necessary), passport or any other government-issued identity documents at hand. Although Aadhaar can be utilized in identity verification, it is not viewed as the exclusive evidence of citizenship status or voter qualification.
The Election Commission has made clear to the voters that they may not be expected to produce documents where their details have already been verified in previous electoral rolls. Nonetheless, it is essential to collaborate in the process of verification so that no mistakes or a threat of being noted as to be deleted can occur.
New voters who have just attained 18 years will also have the opportunity of getting their names added to the voter list through the SIR process. Equally, voters who have changed their residence can change their addresses to enable them to vote under the right constituency.
The same revision exercises have occurred in other states in recent years, pointing out the importance of public awareness, where it was found that due to a lack of documentation or non-cooperation during verification made confusion and raised concerns among the voters. Based on such experiences, Jharkhand election authorities are encouraging the citizens to be more active and responsible.
After the revision process has been done, draft electoral rolls will be published, and voters will be given time to claim or object before the final list is informed. The authorities have pointed out that the SIR exercise is to enhance democracy by making sure that the right of every eligible citizen to vote is not violated.
When the SIR process starts, the voters are recommended to be informed and cooperate with the election officials by means of official announcements.
