The Election Commission of India has postponed the publication schedule of the draft electoral roll in West Bengal under the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR). This revision process, which includes home-to-home voter verification and uploading of enumeration data, is being conducted simultaneously across 12 states and union territories.
According to the earlier timeline, uploading of enumeration forms was supposed to be completed by December 4, with the draft voter list published on December 9, and the final electoral roll finalized by February 7, 2026. However, these dates have now been pushed back by one week. The revised plan sets December 11 as the deadline for data upload, with the draft electoral roll to be issued on December 16. Citizens will then have time until January 15 to raise objections, corrections, or claims regarding voter-list entries.
Election Commission sources indicated that the delays were necessary due to slower-than-expected data processing in several regions, as well as heavy workload pressures on Booth Level Officers. Some participating states also experienced logistical difficulties, impacting the pace of the revision.
Opposition leaders in West Bengal have criticized the original timeframe, arguing that such an extensive verification and digitization process could not practically be completed within the initial deadlines. They contend that the extension exposes poor initial planning and raises concerns about potential errors in the voter roll and unintentional exclusion of eligible voters.