The SIR (Special Intensive Revision) is a one-time, ground-up verification of the electoral roll using door-to-door checks, documentary scrutiny, and AI-enabled database matching to identify and remove duplicate, deceased, migrated and illegal migrant voters before upcoming elections.

 

�� Properly executed, it can significantly harden the voter list against fraud, but its effectiveness will depend on field implementation, data integration, and resistance to local pressures.

��What SIR Is Meant To DoSIR is a special revision conducted under Section 21(3) of the RPA 1950 and Article 324, allowing ECI to carry out a more intensive, exceptional clean-up of rolls beyond the usual annual summary revision.

��Unlike routine updates, all or most existing electors are re-verified, with an explicit mandate to remove illegal immigrants, multiple entries, dead voters and permanently shifted voters.

��Core Operational WorkflowDoor-to-door verificationBooth Level Officers (BLOs) physically visit each household to verify every elector’s presence, age, address and citizenship-linked particulars as per prescribed forms.

��Particular focus is on recent additions, migrated persons and first-time applicants, who must provide declarations and proof of place and date of birth.��Document and database checksBLOs and supervising officers cross-check entries using accepted documents such as voter ID, Aadhaar, ration card and birth-related certificates, as directed by ECI and guided by court observations

.�Entries flagged as doubtful (mismatched age, address, or nationality indicators) are put under “objected” or “suspect” categories pending further inquiry and hearing.Roll restructuring and pruningMultiple entries (same person in two parts/constituencies), dead electors, and permanently shifted voters are systematically identified and removed, with instructions to ensure families remain grouped correctly in the roll to avoid artificial splitting.

��After claims and objections, a final electoral roll is published for each concerned state before the election schedule.

��Tech Layer: AI and Data AnalyticsIn some states (e.g., West Bengal), ECI is deploying AI-driven facial matching to scan voter photographs and detect cases where the same face appears against multiple EPICs or addresses.

�AI tools and backend analytics also help:Flag improbable age patterns, bulk registrations at identical addresses, and clusters of “late additions” before elections.Cross-match data from civil registration (deaths), migration records, and earlier SIR/NRC-type datasets where lawfully available, to mark likely ineligible or foreign-origin entries.

��How It Targets Illegal Migrants & Fake VotersThe political and security focus is on states with known illegal migration pressures (Bihar, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, etc.), where special intensive revisions are already underway or planned.

���Key mechanisms against illegal migrants and fake entries:Place-of-birth scrutiny: Applicants and suspect existing voters must give place and date of birth; inconsistencies or lack of credible documentation trigger inquiry and potential deletion after due process.

��Elimination of impersonation/duplicates: AI facial matching plus field verification aims to neutralise those using multiple identities or misusing migrant workers’ photographs and documents

.�Systematic removal of “silent fraud” entries: Non-reporting of deaths, long-term migration, and politically engineered bulk registrations are addressed through house-to-house checks and deletion drives

.��Likely Effectiveness & Key VulnerabilitiesStrengths

Ground verification + AI-backed analytics provides a layered defence, making it much harder for illegal migrants and fake voters to stay undetected on a large scale.

��A pan-India, time-bound exercise linked to impending elections creates administrative urgency and uniform standards across high-risk states.

��Challenges & RisksCapacity: BLOs are the centre of gravity; overburdened, poorly trained or pressured field staff can dilute the exercise and allow both wrongful deletions and continued fake entries.

��Documentation gaps: Genuine citizens without strong documents (rural poor, migrants, elderly) may be vulnerable to exclusion if safeguards and appeal mechanisms are weak.Political interference: Local actors may attempt to selectively target opponent vote-banks under the label of “illegal migrants,” or shield their own doubtful voters, unless ECI enforces strict, transparent protocols.

Strategic AssessmentFrom an electoral security standpoint, SIR is analogous to a nationwide “counter-infiltration-cum-purge operation” on the voter database, combining human intelligence (BLOs), technical surveillance (AI and database checks), and legal firepower (RPA and Article 324) to restore the purity of the rolls

.��� If ECI ensures strict SOPs, independent audits, and robust grievance redressal, SIR can substantially reduce the influence of illegal migrants and fake voters on upcoming elections and strengthen long-term legitimacy of Indian democracy.