Election Commissioner of India Vivek Joshi on Wednesday reviewed the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands during a meeting held at the A&N Secretariat conference hall. The review was conducted in the presence of the Chief Electoral Officer of the islands and District Election Officers from all three districts.
The SIR is a nationwide exercise undertaken by the Election Commission of India to update and purify electoral rolls by identifying and removing duplicate entries, deceased voters and electors who have permanently shifted, while ensuring that no eligible citizen is excluded from the voter list. Officials informed the Commission that the revision in the islands is being carried out with an emphasis on transparency, accuracy and inclusiveness.
A detailed presentation on the progress of the exercise was made by the Chief Electoral Officer, outlining the scale and coverage of the revision. As of October 27, 2025, the total number of registered electors in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands stood at 3,10,404, including 1,60,523 male voters, 1,49,877 female voters and four voters registered under the third gender category.
To implement the SIR smoothly across the geographically dispersed islands, District Election Officers, Electoral Registration Officers, Assistant Electoral Registration Officers, Booth Level Officers, BLO supervisors and Booth Level Agents have been appointed. Training programmes were conducted across South Andaman, North and Middle Andaman, and Nicobar districts to ensure consistent implementation of guidelines.
Officials reported that 3,10,346 Enumeration Forms have been distributed to voters across the islands. Of these, 2,21,391 filled forms had been collected by the morning of November 26, reflecting significant on-ground progress. The digitisation of collected forms has reached 66.12 per cent so far. In addition, 896 electors have submitted their forms through the online mode, indicating gradual uptake of digital services.
The Chief Electoral Officer also apprised the Commission of coordination meetings held with political parties at the CEO, DEO, ERO and AERO levels. Political parties have extended cooperation by appointing approximately 800 Booth Level Agents, who are working alongside Booth Level Officers to assist voters and support the enumeration process.
Reviewing the progress, the Election Commissioner said the SIR is a strategic exercise essential for ensuring error-free and inclusive electoral rolls. He expressed satisfaction with the systematic manner in which the revision is being conducted in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in line with Election Commission guidelines. Stressing the importance of inclusive elections, he urged officials to further leverage technology, particularly to encourage youth participation and voter enrolment.
The Commission also highlighted simplified online search and mapping options on the ECI portal, including transliteration features, to help electors easily verify their details against previous revisions.
Senior election officials from South Andaman, Nicobar and North and Middle Andaman districts, along with officers from the CEO’s office, attended the review meeting.
