Special summary revisions in limbo over delay in poll panel's nationwide SIR, Pg8.

Key Highlights:

• The Election Commission (EC) is delaying the nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, announced over three months ago.
• This delay is impacting the routine annual Special Summary Revision (SSR), typically completed by the end of December.
• The EC had ordered a pan-India SIR on June 24, starting with Bihar, which has Assembly polls next month.
• In Bihar, the final electoral roll after SIR, released on September 30, listed 7.42 crore electors, down from 7.89 crore.

Detailed Insights:

• SIR involves a full-scale rebuilding of electoral rolls with house-to-house visits, usually done when rolls are outdated or after delimitation.
• SSR is the EC’s routine annual update of rolls, where draft rolls are published, and citizens can submit claims for additions, deletions, or corrections.
• The EC’s standard calendar has the SSR beginning around August, with draft rolls in September/October and final rolls by the first week of January.
• The June 24 order for pan-India SIR faces a legal challenge in the Supreme Court, and the EC is yet to finalize the schedule or guidelines for the rest of the country.
• During Bihar SIR, those registered after 2003 had to submit documents proving eligibility, as part of EC’s attempt to prepare a roll from scratch.
• The EC instructed state Chief Electoral Officers to "get ready" for the SIR within 10-15 days at a conference in Delhi on September 10.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Special Intensive Revision (SIR): A complete rebuilding of electoral rolls involving house-to-house verification.
• Special Summary Revision (SSR): The Election Commission's annual update of electoral rolls.
• Booth-Level Officers (BLOs): Officials responsible for door-to-door verification of voter details.
• Electoral Registration Officers (EROs): Officers responsible for verifying and finalizing entries in the electoral rolls.