Pre-SIR mapping picks up speed in Hyderabad, reaches 37%

The mapping of electors, as a prelude to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls, has shifted gears in the Hyderabad district with the establishment of help desks across its 15 Assembly constituencies.

The pre-SIR mapping involves linking each elector to the SIR of 2002, using either their own registration or the registration of their parents or grandparents as voters.

The mapping has surged from 28% to 37% in a matter of two weeks and is picking up speed, officials informed. The process is being closely monitored, and daily targets are being set for the Booth Level Officers, supervisors, and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers.

More than 300 help desks have been established across the city, with at least 20 in each constituency, to assist voters in finding their constituency and polling station for the 2002 SIR.

As a result, the number of daily mappings has increased phenomenally, officials said. In March, when the mapping was in its initial stages, only about 1,000 to 1,200 voters were being matched per day, which has now risen to a minimum of 10,000 per day.

“For the past 10 days, the numbers have picked up a great deal. On Wednesday, we have set a record of 32,000 voters mapped,” an official informed.

The recently concluded Assembly polls have highlighted the significance of SIR mapping, with several people, including the outgoing Chief Minister of Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, blaming the deletion of a large number of voters as part of SIR for the defeat of her party, the All India Trinamool Congress.

While the deletions in West Bengal have created considerable anxiety among voters who have shifted homes several times since the previous SIR, officials seek to allay these fears, stating that it is a regular exercise conducted periodically to clean up the voters’ list.

“It is the job of the BLOs to map the voters. If mapping cannot be done for some reason, the BLOs visiting door-to-door during SIR will add the residents to the list after taking their details,” Commissioner, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, and Hyderabad District Election Officer R.V.Karnan said.

In Hyderabad, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has already begun securing its electorate in the Old City by setting up its own help desks for mapping. The Bharat Rashtra Samithi too has begun to actively participate in the mapping, with its legislators Talasani Srinivas Yadav, T.Padma Rao Goud and Muta Gopal taking stock of the situation and offering the services of their booth-level agents for speeding up the process.

Of the total 46,79,518 electors, 17,17,224 have been successfully mapped so far, clocking 36.7% mapping. The unmapped voters remain at 29,62,294.

Bahadurpura topped the charts, achieving 47% mapping, with Karwan close behind at 45%. Charminar has completed 42.5% mapping, while Yakutpura has almost reached 40%. Secunderabad Cantonment recorded the lowest mapping, at just under 30%.