Mumbai, August 4, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has revised the schedule for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Maharashtra, with October 1, 2026, as the qualifying date.
As per the updated timeline, the house-to-house verification exercise by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will continue until August 17, 2026, instead of the earlier deadline of August 8. The rationalisation and restructuring of polling stations will also be completed by August 17.
The draft electoral roll will be published on August 24, following which voters and stakeholders can submit claims and objections between August 24 and September 23. The process of hearing and disposing of claims and objections will continue until October 22.
After completion of all formalities, the final electoral roll will be published on October 27, 2026, the ECI said in a statement.
According to government sources, the revision in schedule was made after the state election machinery sought additional time due to heavy rainfall in several regions and the Ashadhi Wari pilgrimage, which required deployment of administrative resources across multiple districts.
The door-to-door verification drive began on June 30, 2026. As of August 3, Maharashtra had distributed 9.18 crore enumeration forms, accounting for 93.79 per cent of the total 9.79 crore registered voters. Around 7.13 crore forms, or 72.89 per cent, have been digitised.
More than one lakh BLOs are engaged in the exercise across all 36 districts of the state.
Wardha and Hingoli have achieved complete distribution of enumeration forms. Hingoli has recorded the highest digitisation rate at 90.47 per cent, followed by Ratnagiri at 89.86 per cent, Buldhana at 89.19 per cent, Yavatmal at 87.93 per cent, and Wardha at 89 per cent.
However, major urban centres continue to trail rural districts in the digitisation process. Thane has digitised 46.55 per cent of forms, the lowest in the state, while Mumbai Suburban has achieved 53.21 per cent, Mumbai City 54.67 per cent, Pune 59.67 per cent and Nagpur 59.77 per cent.
Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer S. Chockalingam said the objective of the exercise is to prepare an accurate and updated electoral roll by ensuring that eligible voters are included while removing duplicate and ineligible entries.
He said doorstep verification by BLOs is essential to achieve a transparent voter list. The extension was sought after heavy rains affected field visits in Mumbai and the Konkan region, while the Ashadhi Wari pilgrimage led to the deployment of officials and resources in districts including Pune, Sangli and Solapur.
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