Shillong | More than 95 per cent of hearings on notices issued during Meghalaya’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls have been completed, with the final voter list scheduled for publication on October 26, the Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office said on Monday.

According to the latest figures released by the office, 6,21,399 hearings have been completed out of 6,51,735 notices issued across the state, taking the completion rate to 95.35 per cent. A total of 2,641 electors have so far been found ineligible for inclusion in the final electoral roll, while 20,86,026 voters have been retained for publication.

Chief Electoral Officer B.D.R. Tiwari reviewed the progress of the exercise during a virtual meeting with Deputy Commissioners, District Election Officers, Electoral Registration Officers, Assistant Electoral Registration Officers and other election officials.

A separate meeting was also held with representatives of recognised national and state political parties to review the status of notices and hearings, applications received and preparations for publication of the final roll.

Over 6.5 lakh notices issued

Meghalaya’s draft electoral roll contained 21,69,243 electors. During the revision exercise, election authorities generated 6,51,735 notices, including 2,22,786 cases involving the absence of mapping and 4,28,949 cases involving discrepancies in mapping.

Tiwari directed officials to expedite the remaining hearings and pending cases while ensuring that all decisions comply with statutory procedures and the Election Commission of India’s instructions.

Over 28,000 applications processed

The CEO’s office said 28,627 applications had been received and digitised during the revision exercise. These included 17,248 Form 6 applications for inclusion of names, 1,963 Form 7 applications seeking deletion or raising objections, and 9,416 Form 8 applications for changes to existing electoral records.

Of the Form 8 applications, 1,673 concerned changes of residence, while 7,743 sought corrections to entries in the electoral roll. Electoral Registration Officers and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers have been instructed to scrutinise and dispose of the applications within the prescribed timelines.

Special enrolment drive planned

The final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on October 26 under the revised timetable approved by the Election Commission. The CEO’s office said efforts were underway to complete the remaining statutory procedures and ensure an accurate, inclusive and transparent voter list.

A special enrolment drive is also proposed after publication to include eligible citizens whose names have been left out, first-time voters and young electors. The office reiterated that voter registration remains a continuous process and that eligible citizens can apply for inclusion through the prescribed procedure if their names do not appear on the electoral roll.

Electors have been urged to verify their details once the final list is published. They can check their names through their respective Booth Level Officers or the Election Commission’s Voters’ Service Portal. The CEO’s office also clarified that possession of an Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) alone does not guarantee the right to vote. A person’s name must appear on the electoral roll in force for the constituency to be eligible to cast a vote.

The election authorities said the objective was to ensure that every eligible citizen is included in the final electoral roll.