Hyderabad: The Telangana final electoral roll will now be published on November 30 instead of November 9, after the Election Commission of India extended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) schedule in the state.
The commission also extended the notice phase, including the disposal of claims and objections, from 5 November to 26 November. The change followed a letter from Chief Electoral Officer C Sudharsan Reddy on October 29 seeking more time.
Andhra Pradesh will also publish its final rolls on November 30, with its notice and claims phase extended to November 20. The commission has revised SIR timelines in Maharashtra, Delhi, Haryana and Nagaland too, each at the request of that state’s chief electoral officer.
Telangana’s schedule has changed several times. In July, the commission fixed October 12 as the date for the final roll. In September, after another request from the CEO, it moved the date to 9 November.
The size of the exercise lies behind the delays. Telangana had about 3.38 crore registered electors before the revision began. Only about 2.64 crore returned their enumeration forms.
The remaining 73.39 lakh names were classified as Absent, Shifted, Dead or Duplicate (ASDD) and left out of the draft rolls.
Officials then generated 92.88 lakh notices for electors whose records showed discrepancies or could not be matched with the 2002 electoral roll, which serves as the base document for the revision. By 29 October, 92.81 lakh notices had been delivered, with only 6,999 still to reach electors. Hearings had been completed for 92.08 lakh notices.
2.59 crore names cleared for Telangana final electoral roll
As of 29 October, 2.59 crore electors had been cleared for inclusion in the final list. This figure includes 59.31 lakh voters whose logical discrepancies were resolved and 30.64 lakh electors who could not be mapped to the 2002 roll but were found eligible.
Another 50,690 electors were found ineligible and will not appear on the final roll.
Progress through the hearings was slow at first. At the end of September, more than 30 lakh electors who had received notices were yet to appear before officials. At that stage, 48,88,076 electors had been declared eligible and 12,99,368 cases were under verification by District Electoral Officers.
By mid-October, more than 90 per cent of electors served notices had been marked for inclusion. Over 5.25 lakh of them were cleared without a hearing.
Electors whose names are missing can still apply for inclusion through Form 6. More than 4.95 lakh Form 6 applications had been filed by 7 October. Officials have said that electors removed during the SIR may face strict verification if they seek re-enrolment later.
Booth Level Officers carried out house-to-house verification during the enumeration phase, which ended on 3 August under the revised July schedule.
Voters have until 26 November to act. Electors who received a notice and have not attended a hearing should contact their Electoral Registration Officer. Those dropped under ASDD can file Form 6 with supporting documents. Electors can check their status through their Booth Level Officer or the voter helpline 1950.
The revised roll will also decide who votes in Hyderabad’s long-delayed civic elections. Polls to the Greater Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Malkajgiri municipal corporations are expected only after the SIR ends.