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Odisha Electoral Roll Revision Begins May 20, New Voters to be Added

Odisha Chief Electoral Officer R.S. Gopalan announced the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls will begin on May 20, 2026. The process will include door-to-door verification and the addition of new voters who turn 18 by July 1. Over 9 lakh ineligible names have been identified for deletion. The final electoral roll will be published on September 6, with polling booths increasing to 45,255.

Key Points: Odisha Voter List Revision Starts May 20

  • Odisha SIR process starts May 20, 2026
  • Qualifying date for new voters is July 1, 2026
  • Door-to-door verification by BLOs from May 30 to June 28
  • Final electoral roll published on September 6
2 min read

Odisha to launch SIR process on May 20, says CEO RS Gopalan

Odisha CEO RS Gopalan announces SIR process from May 20, 2026. New voters turning 18 by July 1 can enroll. Final rolls published Sept 6.

"All eligible citizens who attain 18 years of age by July 1, 2026, and fulfil other required qualifications, will be included in the electoral rolls - RS Gopalan"

Bhubaneswar, May 15

Odisha Chief Electoral Officer R.S. Gopalan on Friday announced that the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in the state will begin from May 20, 2026, with July 1 fixed as the qualifying date for inclusion of new voters.

Addressing the media, the CEO said that all eligible citizens who attain 18 years of age by July 1, 2026, and fulfil other required qualifications, will be included in the electoral rolls during the revision process.

According to the schedule announced by the Election Commission, preparatory activities, including training programmes and printing work, will be conducted from May 20 to May 29. Door-to-door verification by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will commence from May 30 and continue till June 28.

The rationalisation of polling stations is also scheduled to be completed by June 28. The draft electoral roll will be published on July 5. The period for filing claims and objections has been fixed from July 5 to August 4, while the disposal of claims and objections will continue till September 2.

The final electoral roll will be published on September 6. The CEO informed that once the SIR process is completed, the number of polling booths across the state is set to increase to 45,255 with the addition of 7132 new ones, with each booth catering to nearly 1,200 voters on average. He said an equal number of Booth Level Officers (BLOs), around 45,255, will be engaged in electoral management activities.

Gopalan said as many as 27,723 Booth Level Agents have been appointed by seven recognised political parties across the state, appealing to the parties to appoint agents for the remaining booths as well. He further stated that Odisha currently has over 3.34 crore voters enrolled in the electoral rolls. Mapping of voters has already been completed for 94.61 per cent of the electorate.

The CEO also informed the media that around 9 lakh names of voters have been identified for deletion during the pre-SIR process.

On deletion of names from the voter list, Gopalan said nearly nine lakh names have been identified for removal since the revision process began. He added that all ineligible persons, including foreign nationals and those not qualified to remain on the rolls, will be removed as per the law.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

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Sarah B
Impressive that they're adding 7,132 new polling booths to reach 45,255 total. But each booth serving 1,200 voters on average still seems high for some interior areas where roads are bad. Hope the BLOs do thorough door-to-door verification especially in cyclone-prone districts like Ganjam.
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Priya S
Great that they've already mapped 94.61% of voters! But I'm worried about the 9 lakh deletions - are these genuinely duplicate or deceased voters, or could some be errors? In 2019, my grandmother's name was wrongly removed in Puri district and it took months to fix. Hope the claims period is well-advertised in tribal areas too. 💪
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Vikram M
Nice to see political parties are appointing 27,723 booth agents. But they should cover all 45,255 booths - independent candidates and smaller parties also need representation. The SIR process from May 20 to September 6 is a long time, hope they stick to deadlines especially the final publication on Sept 6. Good initiative overall. 🇮🇳
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Michael C
The qualifying date of July 1 seems fair, but I'm curious - why is the SIR only starting in late May when the election is likely in 2027? Seems rushed. Also, 9 lakh deletions is a massive number - that's almost 3% of total 3.34 crore voters! Need strong oversight to ensure no political mischief in removals. 🤔
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Rohit P
Finally some action! My younger brother just turned 18 last month and was worried about not being able to

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