Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on January 23 announced that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists will soon be implemented in all remaining states, an important step towards ensuring the accuracy and integrity of India’s voter database.
Speaking on the eve of the 16th National Voters’ Day, Kumar highlighted the success of the SIR initiative, which aims to create a “pure voter list” by removing ineligible names from the voter lists, covering every eligible voter.
The voter list determination process has been successfully completed in Bihar and currently the process is going on in 12 states and union territories. Bihar’s experience was particularly encouraging, Kumar said, noting that “not a single appeal was filed against the final voter list, which establishes its sanctity and credibility.”
The elections held after SIR of Bihar proved to be historic, with 67.13 percent voting being recorded, the highest since 1951. The Chief Election Commissioner said that the participation rate of women voters was an unprecedented 71.78 percent.
The Election Commission celebrated 2025 as a year of significant achievements and innovations. Around 30 key initiatives also included capacity building programs under which over 5,000 booth level officials and observers from various states were trained at the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management, New Delhi.
Other key initiatives include the launch of the ECINET app, which consolidates all voter services on a single digital platform, the introduction of mobile deposit facility at polling stations and the decision to limit the maximum number of voters per polling station to 1,200 for the convenience of voters.
Kumar also highlighted India’s growing global leadership in election management. The country is assigned the chair of the international IDEA, and on January 21-23 the Election Commission held the world’s largest international conference on election management, attended by heads of election bodies and senior officials from more than 70 countries.
In his message, the Chief Election Commissioner made a special appeal to the young voters, urging them to counter misinformation and disinformation by staying informed about the electoral processes. He announced that the Commission will launch a special youth-centric program this year to provide youth with a clear understanding of the electoral process.
Kumar said, “The first step in the service of the nation is voting,” and called on every citizen who has attained the age of 18 years to register as a voter and exercise their franchise. The Election Commission of India was established on 25 January 1950, a day before the Republic Day. National Voters’ Day is observed annually on this date since 2011, with the aim of marking the foundation day of the Commission and encouraging young voters to participate in the political process.
