After Bihar and Kerala, SIR set to begin in Karnataka
Bengaluru: The Election Commission of India (ECI) is set to begin a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Karnataka — the first such exercise in over two decades — any time after September 25, 2025. The last SIR in the state was conducted in 2002.
The upcoming SIR is aimed at removing names of deceased, duplicate, and migrated voters from the electoral list, and ensuring that the voter rolls are accurate and up-to-date ahead of upcoming elections. Officials believe this exercise could lead to higher voter turnout, especially in urban centres like Bengaluru, which has historically seen lower voting percentages compared to the state average.
The number of registered voters in Karnataka has seen significant growth, from 3.5 crore in 2002 to an estimated 5.5 crore in 2025, prompting the need for a fresh revision of the rolls.
Roll Updates to Be Frozen
Once the SIR begins, updates to electoral rolls — including new registrations (Form 6), deletions (Form 7), and corrections (Form 8) — will be temporarily frozen during the revision process.
According to sources, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Karnataka will officially notify the SIR soon. The three-month-long exercise will be carried out by a team of approximately 58,000 Block-Level Officers (BLOs), who have completed training by September 23.
BLO Honorarium Increased
To recognize their efforts, the ECI has doubled the honorarium for BLOs. Previously paid ₹6,000 for their duties during electoral roll revisions, each BLO will now receive a total of ₹18,000 — ₹12,000 for general revision work and ₹6,000 specifically for the SIR.
“Each BLO will be assigned a polling booth, and the number of voters per booth will vary as per the latest norms,” an official said. BLOs will be drawn from among school teachers, Anganwadi workers, and government employees from both state and central services.
The SIR in Karnataka comes amid ongoing controversies surrounding similar revision exercises in states like Bihar, but officials assure that the process in Karnataka will follow due procedure, with transparency and accuracy as top priorities.
