PUNJAB’S voter base for the 2027 Assembly elections has dropped by over 9 per cent following the first phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that ended this week. The updated draft electoral rolls are scheduled to be published on August 13.The names of 20.66 lakh voters have been removed from the draft electoral rolls, after they were found to be absent due to permanent shifting, death, or duplication of votes. Of the 2,14,61,043 voters verified by the Election Commission of India in Punjab, the number of voters now left in the list is 1,93,94,408.During the 40-day mammoth exercise of enumeration of voters, all those who remained in the voter list till June 9, 2026, were mapped with the voter list of 2003, when the last SIR exercise was carried out.The highest number of unverified forms and excluded voters are concentrated in Ludhiana district (4.16 lakh), followed by Amritsar district (2.42 lakh), Jalandhar district (1.84 lakh), Mohali district (1.53 lakh) and Patiala district (1.38 lakh).Next steps for the unmapped votersBeyond the permanently removed voters, the enumeration forms of 12.8 lakh voters could not be directly mapped to the 2003 rolls. They include individuals whose names were absent in 2003 or those with logical discrepancies (such as name or date of birth mismatches).Verification process: Notices will be issued to these voters to establish their bonafides.Public hearings: Officials will conduct public hearings locally in villages, while in urban areas, voters must visit the designated election offices.The electoral timelinesAugust 13: Publication of the new draft electoral rolls; and opening of the Claims and Objections period.August 13-September 12: Eligible voters left out due to unavoidable reasons can submit Form No. 6 to include their names.October 8: Deadline for the disposal of all claims and objections.October 12: Publication of the final electoral rolls.Anindita Mitra, Chief Electoral Officer, Punjab, told The Tribune: “In case any eligible voter has been left out due to unavoidable reasons, they should actively participate in the upcoming Claims and Objections period from August 13 to September 12, by filling Form No. 6, to ensure their names are included in the final electoral rolls.”Block-level agentsOther than the block-level officers appointed by the Election Commission of India, all political parties were asked to appoint block-level agents to assist in the verification of voters.While the state’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party appointed agents for 24,220 of the total 24,453 booths, the Congress appointed agents for 23,154 booths, Shiromani Akali Dal for 18,429 and BSP for 3,635 booths.The BJP, which is projecting itself as the main challenger to AAP in the upcoming Vidhan Sabha elections, appointed agents at 18,149 booths.More polling stationsFor the 2027 Assembly elections, the number of polling stations have been increased from 24,453 to 25,332 as part of the polling booth rationalisation exercise.CEO Anindita Mitra said an intensive process of physical verification of each polling booth and availability of ‘assured minimum facilities’ has been conducted, following which the polling booths have been increased.