Date:23/10/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/10/23/stories/2008102354490500.htm

Tamil Nadu - Madurai

Steps to prepare revised electoral rolls discussed

Special Correspondent

— Photo: S. James

TAKING STOCK: Chief Electoral Officer Naresh Gupta at a meeting with Collectors of six districts at the Madurai Collectorate on Wednesday.

MADURAI: Chief Electoral Officer Naresh Gupta conducted a review meeting here on Wednesday, following the publication of photo electoral rolls in six southern districts.

He discussed the steps to be taken for preparing revised electoral rolls, with January 1, 2009, as the base date, with the Collectors of Madurai, Theni, Dindigul, Virudhunagar, Sivaganga and Ramanathapuram. Addressing a press conference later, Mr. Gupta said there was an opportunity for those who complete 18 years of age on January 1 to get their names included in the rolls and exercise their franchise in the next Lok Sabha elections. The annual revision of the rolls would begin on November 10. Any addition or deletion could be made till November 24. The final rolls would be published on January 10.

Mr. Gupta said 98.6 per cent of the voters had been covered in the photo electoral list prepared after the completion of delimitation of Assembly segments. These rolls had been released in all but two districts. The lists for Chennai and Coimbatore would be published by the end of this month, as the data entry work was in progress.