Panaji, Feb 21 (IANS) The Election Commission on Saturday published the final electoral roll for Goa, confirming a total of 10,57,566 eligible voters across the state after the Special Intensive Revision of the rolls.

The updated list follows a rigorous verification process aimed at streamlining the electorate and removing discrepancies ahead of upcoming polls.

According to the Chief Electoral Officer of Goa, the total number of voters stood at 11,85,034 prior to the draft publication. This initial pool comprised 5,73,853 male and 6,11,168 female voters.

To ensure accuracy, booth-level officers distributed enumeration forms to all 11.85 lakh citizens, receiving 10,84,992 completed forms, marking a 91.56 per cent return rate. The verification process led to the removal of 1,00,042 voters from the rolls due to various factors such as death, migration, and duplication, an official said.

Breakdown of the dropped voters revealed that 25,574 individuals were deceased, while 29,729 were found to be absent or untraceable. Additionally, about 40,000 voters had shifted their residence to other locations.

Following these corrections, the draft list published on December 16 last year accounted for 10,84,992 lakh voters, including 5.23 lakh males, 5.61 lakh females, and nine third-gender voters.

Technical mapping also played a critical role in the finalisation of the voter list. Out of the 10,84,992 lakh voters in the draft list, about 9 lakh (83.19 per cent) were successfully mapped with parental or personal electoral details. However, the Election Commission’s IT system identified logical discrepancies for approximately 59,000 voters within this mapped group, which were subsequently addressed under various ECINET categories.

Officials confirmed that the final electoral roll is now displayed at all polling stations and is available for public inspection at the offices of the Electoral Registration Officers and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers starting Saturday.

In the 2022 Assembly election in Goa, the Bharatiya Janata Party retained power by winning 20 of 40 seats and later secured support from smaller parties and Independents to form the government. The Congress emerged as the single largest opposition but failed to form a coalition.

In the 2024 general election to the Lok Sabha, Goa’s two parliamentary constituencies were split, with the BJP winning one seat and the Congress the other, reflecting a competitive two-party contest in the state’s national politics.

–IANS

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