The Election Commission of India (ECI) has rolled out Phase III of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 16 states and three Union Territories, covering 36.73 crore electors in one of the country’s largest voter verification exercises in recent years.
Announcing the rollout, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar urged citizens to actively participate in the exercise, saying, “I appeal to all electors to enthusiastically participate in the Phase III of Special Intensive Revision and fill their Enumeration Forms. SIR is being conducted with the objective to ensure that only eligible voters are included in the electoral roll and no ineligible names are included.”
The poll body said the schedule has been aligned with the ongoing house-listing work of the Census to optimise field machinery. It clarified that Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh have been excluded from this phase due to ongoing Census operations and weather conditions in snow-bound and high-altitude regions, with separate schedules to be announced later.
Under Phase III, more than 3.94 lakh Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will carry out house-to-house verification, assisted by 3.42 lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) appointed by political parties. The Commission described SIR as a participative exercise involving electors, political parties, and election officials to ensure accuracy and transparency in electoral rolls.
The revision will be conducted in seven tranches between May and December 2026. States and UTs have staggered timelines depending on logistical readiness. The first tranche begins on May 30, while later phases extend up to December.
According to ECI data, the first two phases of SIR covered nearly 59 crore electors across 13 states and UTs, with large-scale participation from field officers and political party representatives.
With Phase III, the exercise now extends to almost the entire country, making it a nationwide electoral verification drive aimed at strengthening the integrity of voter lists ahead of future elections.
States and UTs Covered in Phase-III
The third phase of the SIR exercise will be carried out in Odisha, Mizoram, Sikkim, Manipur, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Telangana, Punjab, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Delhi, Nagaland and Tripura.
As per the schedule released by the Election Commission, house-to-house visits by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) in Odisha, Mizoram, Sikkim and Manipur will be conducted from May 30, 2026, to June 28, 2026. In Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, the visits will take place from June 4 to July 3, 2026, while in Uttarakhand, the exercise will be conducted from June 8 to July 7, 2026.
For Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana and Chandigarh, BLOs will conduct house-to-house verification from June 15 to July 14, 2026. Telangana and Punjab will witness the exercise from June 25 to July 24, 2026. In Karnataka, Meghalaya, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Delhi, the visits are scheduled from June 30 to July 29, 2026.
The exercise in Nagaland will be conducted from August 16 to September 14, 2026, while Tripura will have house-to-house visits from September 15 to October 14, 2026.