73 Lakh Telangana Voters Unenrolled as Voter Revision Deadline Ends

The submission phase for voter enumeration forms under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Telangana concluded at 6 pm on Monday, leaving approximately 73 lakh voters at risk of missing the upcoming voter list. According to data released by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), 78.26 per cent of the 3.38 crore distributed enumeration forms were digitised statewide, with Hyderabad district recording the lowest completion rate at 58.89 per cent.

Across all 33 districts in the state, electoral authorities distributed a total of 3,38,26,448 enumeration forms. Out of the distributed forms, electors submitted 2,64,73,616 forms that were subsequently digitised by the deadline, according to an official statement from the CEO.

The performance varied significantly across districts. Yadadri-Bhongir district topped the state during the enumeration phase by digitising 94.31 per cent of its voters' names. In contrast, Hyderabad district lagged behind all other districts, with a large majority of the missing 73 lakh voters coming from Hyderabad, Rangareddy, and Medchal-Malkajgiri districts.

Even on the final day of the enumeration phase, community halls and designated enumeration centres remained largely deserted as citizens omitted from the electoral roll showed little interest in participating in the voter clean-up drive.

Election officials attributed the low response in the Hyderabad metropolis primarily to demographic factors, specifically the preference of migrant populations to maintain voter registrations in their native places. Officials stated that residents hailing from Andhra Pradesh and other states chose to enroll in their home states, resulting in them being listed as absent in local records. Similarly, native Telangana residents living in the capital chose to register in their home districts rather than in Hyderabad.

Additionally, officials observed that affluent sections of society showed little interest in protecting their votes. A resident from a gated community in Nallagandla noted that while people display enthusiasm for festivals such as Ganesh Chaturthi and Navratri, the same level of interest was missing for the SIR 2026 process.

Following the conclusion of the enumeration phase, the voter list is scheduled to be published on August 17. Electors will be permitted to file claims and objections regarding the list between August 17 and October 15, after which the final electoral roll will be published on October 19.