Door-to-door SIR exercise starts in Karnataka

BENGALURU: A door-to-door house enumeration exercise under the SIR of the electoral roll began on Tuesday in Karnataka.

According to the Election Commission, the exercise is to prepare a clean and flawless electoral roll for the upcoming elections to ensure undeserving voters do not find a place in it.

Comprehensive guidelines for the issuance of Permanent Residence Certificates (PRCs) and an operational framework to facilitate their time-bound delivery through digital and decentralised service channels across the state have been notified by the state government.

The Revenue Department said the new framework is intended to establish a uniform, transparent and legally sustainable mechanism for certifying permanent residence, while integrating the service with the Karnataka Sakala Services Act, 2011, and existing digital governance platforms.

"The PRC shall constitute proof of permanent residence in the state of Karnataka," a government order said.

The framework is intended to provide a uniform mechanism for certifying permanent residence wherever it is prescribed under applicable laws, government orders, notifications or scheme guidelines, the order further said.

Under the guidelines, a PRC may be issued if the competent authority is satisfied, after enquiry and verification, that the applicant is a genuine and permanent resident of Karnataka.

The order lists several factors that may be considered while determining eligibility.

These are -- birth in Karnataka, ordinary residence in the state for at least 10 years, studying in recognised educational institutions in Karnataka for at least 10 academic years up to Class XII or equivalent, residence of parents or spouse, ownership or lawful occupation of residential property, entries in government records such as electoral rolls, Aadhaar or ration cards, government or public service in Karnataka for at least seven years, marriage to an eligible resident, and any other reliable documentary, electronic or oral evidence establishing Karnataka as the principal and permanent place of residence.

It clarified that these factors are illustrative and not exhaustive, and that the absence of any one criterion shall not automatically render an applicant ineligible.

Every decision granting or refusing a certificate must be a speaking order, it said.

Deputy Tahsildars, Tahsildars or other authorised officers will serve as issuing authorities, while appeals will lie before the Assistant Commissioner within 30 days and revision petitions before the Deputy Commissioner within 60 days, the order said.

Ahead of the exercise, Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday urged all eligible voters in the state to compulsorily participate in the SIR of electoral rolls beginning on June 30.

He cautioned people that failure to submit the enumeration form within the stipulated period could result in the loss of voting rights and create difficulties in accessing government welfare benefits. Shivakumar said the Karnataka government had put in place an extensive support system, including thousands of facilitation centres, helplines and online services, to assist voters during the month-long exercise being undertaken by the Election Commission. "Right to vote is the right to live. Therefore, everyone must preserve their vote. If you do not, you will lose your right to vote. You may also lose access to several benefits provided by the government," he said.

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) V Anbukkumar on Monday said Booth Level Officers (BLO) would begin distributing enumeration forms from June 30 as Karnataka commenced the SIR of the 2026 electoral roll.

He said the qualifying date for the exercise is October 1, 2026.

Addressing a press conference here, the chief electoral officer said BLOs would conduct house-to-house visits from June 30 to July 29.

The draft electoral roll will be published on August 5.

He said the period for filing claims and objections would be from August 5 to September 4, while notices, wherever required, would be issued and claims and objections disposed of between August 5 and October 3.

The final electoral roll will be published on October 7.

"As far as Karnataka is concerned, the entire machinery is geared up for this exercise. We have deployed 68,123 officials, such as 59,050 booth level officers, 7,556 booth level supervisors and 224 electoral registration officers. All officers have been trained and are ready to undertake this exercise," he said.

Anbukkumar said political parties had appointed around 1.15 lakh booth-level agents, the majority of whom had been trained.