District Election Officer and Deputy Commissioner S.J. Somashekar recently held a meeting with representatives of various political parties regarding the Special Comprehensive Revision of the Electoral Roll.
The meeting, held at the Deputy Commissioner’s Office in Madikeri, focused on ensuring the revision process is carried out systematically, transparently and efficiently with the cooperation of all recognised political parties.
Addressing the meeting, Somashekar said the Election Commission of India has fixed October 1, 2026 as the qualifying date for the Special Comprehensive Revision of the electoral roll.
He explained that preparatory activities, including training programmes and printing of materials, will be undertaken from June 20 to June 29. House-to-house verification by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and rationalisation of polling stations will be conducted between June 30 and July 29. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â The draft electoral roll will be published on August 5, following which claims and objections may be filed from August 5 to September 4. The verification and disposal of claims and objections will continue until October 3, and the final electoral roll will be published on October 7, he said.
Somashekar stated that during the pre-revision exercise, Booth Level Officers will visit every household in the district. Citizens may utilise this opportunity to seek corrections in voter details, enrol new voters, remove the names of deceased or shifted voters and register eligible youth who attain the age of 18 years on the prescribed qualifying dates.
He said necessary preparations for the revision exercise have already been completed. Training programmes have been conducted for election officials, Tahsildars and technical personnel regarding the use of Information Technology applications, while Booth Level Officers will receive training from Electoral Registration Officers.
Pre-filled enumeration forms will be printed and supplied to households. During house-to-house visits, BLOs will distribute these forms in duplicate and assist residents in completing them correctly.
In cases where houses remain locked, officials will make at least three attempts to contact residents. Voters are required to submit the completed forms along with supporting documents to the BLOs, who will issue acknowledgements.
Alternatively, voters may also upload the completed forms and documents online. The Deputy Commissioner emphasised that all recognised political parties must appoint one Booth Level Agent (BLA) for every polling booth in view of the revision exercise. These agents will assist in disseminating information, monitor the work of Booth Level Officers and help ensure the preparation of an error-free electoral roll.
Providing details of the progress achieved so far, Somashekar said that as part of the preliminary exercise, voter data from the 2025 electoral roll has been matched with records from the 2002 electoral roll. Genealogical details of voters have also been linked wherever available.
He informed that the district has achieved 98.30 per cent progress, with 4,60,602 voters out of 4,68,546 voters successfully mapped. Efforts are underway to complete the verification and mapping of the remaining voters.
The Deputy Commissioner further stated that Electoral Registration Officers and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers have been appointed for the district’s two Assembly constituencies. Sub-Divisional Officer Nitin Chakki has been appointed Electoral Registration Officer for the 208-Madikeri Assembly Constituency, while District Urban Development Cell Project Director R. Manjunath has been appointed for the 209-Virajpet Assembly Constituency.
Tahsildars of the respective taluks have been designated as Assistant Electoral Registration Officers. A total of 552 Booth Level Officers and 96 BLO Supervisors have been appointed across the district to facilitate the comprehensive revision process.
During the discussion, Indian National Congress representative Thennira Maina pointed out that voter names in Kodagu were recorded using family names in earlier electoral rolls, particularly before 2002, whereas current records largely use initials. He suggested that adequate public awareness should be created to avoid confusion during the revision process.
Responding to the concern, Somashekar assured that the issue has been taken into consideration and that appropriate awareness measures will be undertaken.
Among those present were BJP leaders Robin Devaiah and Sajil Krishna, JD(S) leaders ThekkadeGulabi Janardhan, BSP leader Divil Kumar, Machimanda Ramesh Poovaiah, CPI(M) District Secretary H.B. Ramesh, CPI Secretary Ramesh Mayamudi and representatives of other political parties.
