Migrant workers anxious as India's Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls kicks off

In Delhi's Rangpuri Pahari slum, anxiety is rising as the capital begins the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The neighbourhood hosts thousands of migrant workers who have lived hand to mouth for years, many in the unorganised sector as domestic workers, cooks, mechanics, car washers and construction labourers.

Now they fear they may have to make sudden and costly trips home to keep their names on India's electoral rolls.

On 4 November, India launched a major exercise to revise electoral rolls across 12 states and federally administered regions.

Known as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), it covers nearly 510 million voters — more than half of the country's 970 million electorate.

The Election Commission (EC) says the aim is to ensure no eligible voter is left out and no ineligible name remains on the rolls. A similar controversial exercise was recently conducted in Bihar.

As part of the exercise, polling booth level officers visit households across towns and villages, collecting personal identity details and voter card numbers.

For most migrant workers, an unplanned trip home means extra costs and lost wages.

Rohini Mondol, a domestic worker, says her employers only grant time off during elections and festivals. If she takes leave, she risks losing salary and being replaced.

Similar concerns were voiced by others in the slum. Subhashri Doloi, another domestic worker, notes she was saving to travel home to vote in a few months, but spending that money now could leave her unable to travel again for the elections.

Some worry about gaps in official documents - a common problem across India, especially in rural areas.

Kusum Devi, who works in a garment factory in Delhi, is a registered voter in her village in Uttar Pradesh - one of the states where the SIR is ongoing. But her Aadhaar, a national unique identification number, shows her as a resident of Delhi.

There has been no problem so far, but she wonders what will happen next.

Workers also worry that the SIR could affect their access to welfare schemes. For those from West Bengal, which borders Bangladesh, there is an added fear of being asked to prove citizenship.

Crackdowns on alleged illegal immigrants from Bangladesh are not new in India. In recent months, hundreds have been arrested on suspicion of being illegal migrants.

Nobody wants to be wrongly branded as Bangladeshi, says Yaser Ali from West Bengal, who sells utensils. If the SIR helps, we want it done right, but doing it on such short notice is challenging.

Under the guidelines, there is a provision to fill the SIR form online, but most migrant workers INLIBER spoke to said they were unfamiliar with the process or found it too risky.

The EC has dismissed these concerns, saying the process is carried out transparently.

In a statement shared with the INLIBER, the poll panel urged voters to opt for online verification, noting it is available for those who are away from their residence.

The physical forms, meanwhile, can be filled by the electors themselves or any adult family member, by noting their relationship with the elector, and handed to booth-level officers, the EC said.

The EC added that it will ensure ample time for electors to file claims and objections.

For the SIR, electoral rolls from 2002 to 2004 are being used as reference.

People whose names do not appear in those lists must provide one additional document - such as a birth or caste certificate, passport, school records, post-office papers and bank documents - to enrol.

Those who became eligible voters or were born after the reference year must also show supporting documents for one or both their parents.

However, an EC order issued on 27 October says, no document is to be collected from electors during the enumeration phase - without giving any more details.

Some workers are hopeful. Ramdhin Prajapati, a factory worker who votes in Uttar Pradesh, says he sees SIR as a one-time effort worth making.

Uttar Pradesh will not go to the polls before 2027, and Prajapati believes there will be enough time to correct any issues if needed.

But that's not the case for workers from West Bengal, where elections are a few months away.

There is hardly any time, says Uma Muniam, who works as a cook in Delhi. There are millions of migrants like me across India. Will they manage to travel twice in four months — once for SIR and again for the election?

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