Odisha to Update Voter Lists Through Statewide Household Survey Before Local Polls

The Odisha State Election Commission (SEC) has drawn up an extensive roadmap to update electoral rolls ahead of the next three-tier Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI) and Urban Local Body (ULB) elections, with a state-wide door-to-door voter survey scheduled to begin on October 26 and continue until November 7.

The exercise, announced following a review meeting chaired by the State Election Commissioner with district collectors and election officials on Tuesday, is intended to produce a more accurate and error-free electoral roll before local body elections expected between April and May next year. 

Under the schedule finalised by the Commission, district-level survey teams will be constituted by July 31. Officials will undertake household visits across the state from October 26 to November 7 to verify voter information, while the final electoral roll is targeted for publication by February 10. Polls are likely to be held after the completion of the national Census, with the election notification expected after the first week of March. 

SEC Secretary Santosh Kumar Das said the Commission has opted for a physical verification process instead of relying solely on the conventional method of splitting the Election Commission of India’s electoral rolls. According to him, the earlier approach had resulted in significant inaccuracies and legal disputes, making a comprehensive field survey necessary to improve the quality of voter lists. 

To address duplicate voter registrations, the Commission will introduce a specialised de-duplication software tool during the revision process. Das said the system would identify and eliminate duplicate entries arising from errors across rural and urban constituencies, thereby reducing multiple registrations of the same elector. 

The Commission is also moving to digitise the conduct of elections. The entire nomination process for both Panchayat and municipal elections will be automated, enabling daily real-time monitoring of nominations filed, withdrawals and the final list of valid candidates. Standard inspection formats will also be issued to District Collectors and Block Development Officers (BDOs) to assess polling stations, strong rooms and counting centres at least six months before polling. 

Election preparedness has also prompted a review of voting infrastructure. Odisha currently possesses around 8,000 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), while the projected requirement for the upcoming elections exceeds 12,000. The SEC said arrangements are being made to procure additional machines. Simultaneously, damaged ballot boxes are being repaired and fresh ones will be purchased wherever required to ensure adequate equipment is available. 

Explaining the election timeline, Das noted that Census operations are scheduled to run from February until the first week of March. Once the Census concludes, the State Election Commission will issue the formal poll notification, paving the way for elections to be conducted during April or May. 

The Commission had initiated preparations earlier this month by convening a statewide review meeting with district collectors, additional district magistrates serving as ULB nodal officers, Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) and other district officials to assess readiness for the voter list revision and other pre-election activities.