Examiner Bureau | Jammu:
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has deferred the announcement of the schedule for the Special Summary Revision (SSR) of electoral rolls in Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh, citing the need to take local weather conditions into consideration.
In a statement, the Commission said the revision exercise had not yet commenced in the three regions and that a separate schedule would be notified in due course, keeping the prevailing and anticipated weather conditions in view.
The decision assumes significance for Jammu and Kashmir, where the last revision of electoral rolls was conducted in 2024. No such exercise has been undertaken in the Union Territory since then.
Meanwhile, the ECI has announced the annual Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls in Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Mizoram, Odisha and Sikkim.
The exercise is aimed at ensuring the enrolment of all eligible voters, particularly young and first-time electors. It will also facilitate advance applications from individuals who will attain the qualifying age on April 1, July 1 and October 1, 2027.
As per the schedule, draft electoral rolls will be published on November 30, while the final rolls are scheduled to be published on January 21, 2027.
The Commission has also introduced safeguards to prevent wrongful deletion of names from electoral rolls. Applications seeking deletion on grounds of duplicate or multiple entries will be subject to field verification.
Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) will be required to personally verify deletion proposals involving more than two per cent of electors at a polling station. They will also have to cross-check cases in which a single objector submits more than five objections.
Clarifying the requirements regarding Aadhaar, the ECI said furnishing Aadhaar details in Forms 6 and 8 would remain voluntary. No application for enrolment can be rejected, nor can an existing electoral entry be deleted, solely on the ground that an individual has not provided Aadhaar details.
Earlier, on October 15, the Commission had announced the Special Summary Revision exercise in 17 States and Union Territories, including poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa and Punjab.
In another change aimed at improving transparency and accessibility, the ECI decided to provide electoral rolls to political parties in readable PDF format instead of image files.
The Commission has also directed the chief secretaries of the concerned States and Union Territories to ensure the availability of adequate manpower and resources for the smooth conduct of the revision exercise.
