Daijiworld Media Network – Bhubaneshwar

Bhubaneswar, Sep 22: The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Odisha has been completed, with the state recording more than 3.16 crore electors and 44,777 names deleted, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) RS Gopalan said on Monday.

The final electoral roll comprises 1.61 crore male voters, 1.54 crore female voters and over 2,700 third-gender voters.

Briefing reporters in Bhubaneswar, Gopalan said the final electoral roll reflected the Election Commission’s commitment to maintaining an accurate, inclusive, transparent and updated voters’ list in Odisha.

He appreciated the efforts of district electoral officers, deputy collectors, electoral registration officers, assistant electoral registration officers, booth-level officers (BLOs), supervisors and other officials involved in the exercise.

Gopalan said 58,36,392 notices were issued for verification during the notice phase. These included 12,98,779 unmapped electors and 45,37,613 electors whose entries had logical discrepancies.

Around 2,55,996 claims and objections were received and processed during the exercise.

Following the disposal of claims and objections, 2,90,497 electors were added and 44,777 names were deleted from the draft electoral roll, resulting in a net addition of 2,45,720 electors.
The CEO also said 45,250 polling stations had been designated across Odisha.

In August, Gopalan had announced that the final electoral roll would be published on September 21. However, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) had sought an extension of the claims and objections period in view of the floods in the state.

The party had argued that the prevailing conditions made it difficult for electoral officials, voters and booth-level agents to complete verification and submit claims and objections within the existing deadline.

BJD leader Debi Prasad Mishra had said an extension was essential to ensure the preparation of a transparent and impartial electoral roll.