EC publishes Bihar final electoral roll as poll schedule nears

The Election Commission of India on Tuesday published the final electoral roll for Bihar, completing a Special Intensive Revision carried out ahead of assembly elections expected later this year, officials said. The commission also announced deployment of 470 central observers and scheduled a review visit to Patna by its top officials on October 4 and 5, steps that set the stage for a formal announcement of the poll schedule before the current assembly’s term ends on November 22.

The revision exercise, the first of its kind in more than two decades, began with a draft roll published on August 1 that listed 7.24 crore electors after the removal of about 65 lakh names identified as deceased, migrated or duplicate entries. Statewide, Bihar had been reported to have about 7.89 crore electors before the process began. The final roll has been uploaded to the Election Commission website and physical copies will be distributed to district election officers and recognised parties, officials said. Voters have been urged to verify their details online.

Officials said the SIR involved more than 77,000 booth level officers assisted by nearly 3,000 assistant officers and more than 1.6 lakh...