Fri Dec 19 15:12:19 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a summary and a rewritten news article based on the provided text:

Summary:

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has released the draft electoral roll for Tamil Nadu after conducting a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list. This is significant as the state is gearing up for Assembly elections next year. The revision resulted in the deletion of over 9.7 million voters due to reasons like death, relocation, duplication, or failure to submit the SIR enumeration forms. The new draft roll contains 54.3 million voters. The electoral roll is available online and offline, and procedures for eligible voters to check their names or apply for inclusion are outlined.
News Article:

Tamil Nadu Releases Draft Voter Roll After Major Revision, Assembly Elections Loom

Chennai, December 19, 2025 – The Election Commission of India (ECI) today published the draft electoral roll for Tamil Nadu, following a contentious Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The release comes months before the state is due to hold Assembly elections in 2026.

According to Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu, Archana Patnaik, the SIR process led to the removal of 9,737,831 voters from the rolls. Deletions were attributed to factors such as death, relocation, duplicate registrations, and failure to complete required SIR enumeration forms.

The revised draft roll now lists 54,376,756 eligible voters, comprising 26,663,233 men, 27,706,332 women, and 7,191 individuals identifying as third gender. This is a significant decrease from the 64,114,587 voters registered as of October 27, 2025.

“The draft electoral roll is now available for public scrutiny, both online and offline,” said Ms. Patnaik at a press conference. Voters can check their registration status via the ECI website (voters.eci.gov.in), the ECINET app, or by contacting their local Booth Level Officer (BLO).

Individuals whose names are not included in the draft roll can apply for inclusion by submitting Form 6, along with supporting documents, either online or to their respective BLO. Special camps will also be organized to facilitate the registration process; dates will be announced later.

Concerns have previously been raised regarding the stress and unrealistic expectations placed on Booth Level Officers during the SIR process.

The updated voter list is crucial for ensuring fair and accurate elections in the upcoming Assembly polls. Information on absent, shifted, deceased, or duplicate voters, and the reasons for their exclusion from the roll, can be found on the websites of the District Election Officers (DEOs) and the Chief Electoral Officer (erolls.tn.gov.in/asd). This information will also be displayed at local government offices.

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