Kolkata: As the first stage of the three-level Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal is coming to a close, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has already identified 18.70 lakh dead voters still existing in the current voters’ list, till November 29 evening.
Sources from the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, said that the ECI has further scaled up its estimated number of voters likely to be deleted from the draft voters’ list to be published on December 9. The new estimated figure on this count is around 35 lakh.
The figure of 35 lakh includes 18.70 lakh of deceased voters in addition to duplicate voters, untraceable voters, and voters who have permanently shifted to different states.
“The figure is based on the trend so far on the digitisation of enumeration forms collected from the voters. Till Saturday evening, digitisation of 88.50 per cent of the enumeration forms collected was completed. The actual number of voters whose names will be deleted after the digitisation is completed will be even more. The picture will be clear after the draft voters’ list is published on December 9,” a CEO’s office insider said.
The total number of voters in West Bengal as per the electoral roll as on October 27, 2025, is 7,66,37,529.
The first stage of the three-level SIR started on November 4. The entire process is expected to be completed by the end of March next year. The last time the SIR was conducted in the state was in 2002.
As per the SIR protocol, the voters having their names or their parents’ names in the 2002 voters list will be automatically deemed to be valid voters. Those not having their names or their parents’ names in the voters’ list of 2002 will have to furnish any one of the 11 identity documents specified by the ECI to get their names retained in the voters’ list.
Although the Aadhaar card has been included as the 12th document in the list, the ECI had made it clear that those furnishing the cards will have to submit one more among the 11 other identity documents it has specified.
(IANS)
