CHENNAI: As the claims and objections period under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) ended on January 30, as many as 22.83 lakh voters applied for the inclusion of their names after the draft electoral roll released on December 19 showed the deletion of nearly 97 lakh voters.
During the claims and objections period, a total of 34.75 lakh applications were received under four categories through both online and offline modes, according to Chief Electoral Officer Archana Patnaik.
Of these, 22.83 lakh applications were for inclusion of names in the voter list.
Officials said 17.10 lakh of the inclusion applications were received through the offline mode and 5.73 lakh online.
The next most common request was for change of address, accounting for 9.90 lakh applications.
The draft electoral roll showed a sharp decline in the electorate, with the total number of voters in the State dropping from 6.41 crore to 5.43 crore.
Voters whose names were removed and those who wanted to enrol were given an opportunity to submit claims and objections from December 19.
The Election Commission had organised six rounds of special camps across the State over the past 40 days for claims and objections.
A senior election official said the applications received are now being scrutinised. Each application will be verified to determine eligibility, and the final voter list will be published on February 17, with which the SIR exercise will formally conclude.
Officials said eligible citizens whose names do not appear in the final list can still apply for inclusion up to 10 days before the last date for filing nominations for the ensuing election.
Such applicants will be included only in the supplementary voter list and may not receive an Electoral Photo Identity Card immediately.
They will, however, be allowed to vote using any of the 13 alternative identity documents prescribed by the Election Commission.