West Bengal electorate drops 8.09% to 7.04 crore after SIR

Election Commission of India starts phased publication of electoral rolls in West Bengal, deleting 1.18 lakh names in Bankura amid high voter interest.

After four months of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the number of electors in West Bengal stands at 7.04 crores on Saturday (February 28, 2026), marking an 8.09% decline from 7.66 crore—the total electorate in the State before the SIR began in October 2025.

The 7.04 crore also includes approximately 60 lakh electors whose status remains under adjudication by 501 judicial officers, in compliance with a recent order of the Supreme Court.

“The main objective (of the SIR) is to ensure inclusion of all eligible electors and exclusion of all ineligible electors with full transparency at every stage of the process,” a press statement issued by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, said. It added that the “exhaustive approach ensured the integrity of the electoral roll by successfully identifying and removing ineligible entries, specifically addressing deceased individuals, permanent out-of-State migrations, and duplicate registrations”.

According to the statement, the total electorate as of February 28 stands at 7,04,59,284, which includes 3,60,22,642 male, 3,44,35,260 female and 1,382 third-gender electors. CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal said the gender ratio remains unchanged at 956 females per 1000 males—the same as when the voter list of 7.66 crore electors was frozen on October 27, 2025.

The draft electoral roll, published on December 16, 2025, contained 7,08,16,630 electors. A total of 58,20,899 names were deleted under categories like deceased, absent, shifted and duplicate electors.

Following the publication of the draft roll, 1,82,036 additions were made through Form 6 and Form 6 A (for inclusion of new voters). Additionally, 6,671 electors were added through Form 8, which relates to a change of residence or correction of entries.