Dikhyaa Mohanty 
All preparations for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in Odisha have been completed, with the number of polling booths increasing to nearly 43,000 following the addition of 7,000 new centres. The five-month-long exercise aims to ensure that every eligible voter is duly registered while strengthening polling infrastructure ahead of upcoming elections.
Officials in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) said the expansion has raised the total number of booths from about 36,000 to 43,000. The move is intended to ease voter congestion and improve accessibility, with each polling booth designed to serve no more than 1,200 electors.
Booth-level officers have already been appointed to supervise the process and ensure its smooth implementation. As part of the SIR, voter data from the 2002 and 2025 electoral rolls has been integrated, ensuring that existing valid entries are retained while newly eligible voters are added. Nearly 70 per cent of the mapping work has been completed, and the remaining exercise will be finalised before the publication of the updated rolls.
This marks the first comprehensive revision of Odisha’s voter list since 2002 and is being viewed as a major step toward enhancing electoral transparency and inclusivity. Officials stressed that the updated system will help eliminate duplication, minimise errors, and ensure that every eligible citizen can exercise their right to vote without difficulty. With preparations now complete, Odisha is poised to move into the next phase of the electoral process with improved infrastructure and a stronger voter database, with the increased number of polling booths expected to significantly benefit voters in rural and remote areas.
