India News : A major revelation has come to light amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) drive in West Bengal. The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has informed the Election Commission that around 3.4 million Aadhaar cardholders in the state have been found to be deceased, while nearly 1.3 million other individuals who never enrolled for Aadhaar have also passed away.
This information was shared during a meeting between UIDAI officials and the state’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal. According to officials, the meeting aimed to verify voter list data and identify potential discrepancies.
A senior officer from the CEO’s office said that the Election Commission has been receiving continuous complaints regarding dead, ghost, missing, and duplicate voters. The UIDAI’s data on deceased individuals will play a crucial role in cleaning up the electoral rolls.
The officer further informed that the draft voter list will be published on December 9. If any applicant’s name appears among Aadhaar holders who are found deceased, the concerned Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) may summon them for verification.
Additionally, officials said that data is being collected from banks, as most accounts are linked with Aadhaar. Banks have provided details of accounts whose KYC has not been updated for years, helping identify deceased persons whose names still appear in the voter list.
Under the SIR campaign, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are currently going door-to-door distributing enrollment forms. The process is being carried out based on the 2025 electoral roll, with cross-verification of data from as far back as 2002.
According to the Chief Electoral Officer’s office, as of 8 p.m. on Wednesday, a total of 69.8 million, or 91.19% of enrollment forms, had already been distributed across the state.
