The cost of staying on the list

Migrant workers from Bihar are spending weeks' wages and sacrificing festival visits to ensure their names remain on the electoral rolls amidst the ongoing special intensive revision

Umesh Kumar Ray

Mukesh Paswan with his wife at his home in Akbarpur village in Nalanda. Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

Nalanda, BIHAR: Mukesh Paswan was working at a rice mill in Hyderabad when his wife, Geeta Kumari, made a distress call from Akbarpur village in Bihar’s Nalanda district – 1500 km away from Hyderabad. The call was not related to any family issue, but an alert to an impending threat to his name being removed from the state’s electoral rolls.

The voter identity card carries the name, address and photograph of an individual and is often used as a proof of identity and citizenship. It acts as an address proof needed for banking or telephone SIM cards. It establishes that the person is above 18 years of age and eligible to vote. It is also a widely used card for availing of government schemes.

So soon after his wife’s call, Paswan spoke to his contractor, took urgent leave for 20 days, booked a train ticket through an agent paying 2500 rupees, and left for Bihar.

Knowing that it would take him four hours to reach Secunderabad railway station from the mill, with traffic jams routine along the way, he left on the night of July 6, so that he could catch his train the next day.

“I took a bus and reached Secunderabad railway station late at night after paying 350 rupees,” he said. He spent the night at the station, so that he could ensure he got on the Danapur Superfast Express at 9.30 am. From there, it was a 36-hour journey to Danapur in Patna, and then a bus ride before he reached home late at night on July 8. He had spent 20% of his 20,000 per month salary to get home. 

“It cost me 5,000 rupees to come home from Hyderabad, and when I return, it will cost me the same amount. I have now exhausted the leave I was planning to take for Durga Puja, so I will not be able to return home for Durga Puja and Chhath holidays this time,” he told The Migration Story. 

Mukesh Paswan sitting at his home in Akbarpur village in Nalanda district of Bihar in July-mid. He had to travel back from Hyderabad to his village to fill the enumeration form so his and his family’s name were not deleted. Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

The Election Commission of India announced the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voters’ list on June 24, 2025, which put migrant workers at risk of their names being deleted from the electoral roll. Out-migration from Bihar to other Indian states for employment is the highest in the country. At the same time, ensuring their names are on the electoral rolls is also a priority for these migrants. Firstly, because it guarantees them the right to vote, and secondly, because the Voter ID Card is a crucial identity proof required to avail government welfare schemes.  

Both reasons are equally important for Paswan, who belongs to the Scheduled Castes (SC) category, which makes up 19.65% of the total population of Bihar. 

“I was afraid that if I did not return and fill the necessary forms, my family’s name and mine would be deleted from the voters’ list,” he said, sitting with his wife and three children at his unplastered home, fatigued after his three-day-long train and bus journey.

WHAT IS SIR?

A screenshot of an ANI photo published in The Hindu

The ECI on June 24, 2025, issued a press release announcing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls of Bihar, one of India's most populous states, with a population of 13.07 crore and 7.89 crore voters, according to Caste Survey Report 2022-2023. The ECI said in its press release that the need for an intensive revision was felt, taking into account rapid urbanization, frequent migration, young citizens becoming eligible to vote, non-reporting of deaths, and inclusion of names of illegal immigrants from foreign countries. The ECI further stated that this was being done to ensure integrity and the preparation of error-free electoral rolls.

The last special revision or SIR of Bihar's electoral rolls was in 2003, 22 years ago, according to the Election Commission of India. Those registered in the electoral roll in the 2003 revision, do not need to submit any further documents, but those registered after 2003 need to submit documents establishing their name and place of birth and also that of their parents. Data released by ECI in the press release shows that in Bihar, about 2.93 crore voters were added after 2003.  

According to the instructions detailed in the ECI’s press release, voters whose names have appeared in the 2003 voter lists need to add their Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) details in the enumeration forms. However, those whose names were added in the electoral roll after 2003 will need to submit one among 11 documents such as birth certificate, domicile certificate, passport, residential certificate, caste certificate as identity proof, along with details of EPIC of their parents. 

The ECI has stated that 98,498 Booth Level officers (BLOs) have been enlisted to get enumeration forms filled and submitted, and that it will publish the revised electoral roll after due scrutiny on September 30, 2025. 

According to the 2011 census, about 9.3 million Biharis migrated to other states for livelihood between 2001 and 2011. However, the latest figures could be much higher. In 2020, following the nationwide pandemic due to COVID-19, more than 30 lakh migrant workers returned to Bihar. 

Based on the migration data of the National Sample Survey Organization, P Sarkar of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) found in a 2019 study that the biggest reason for migration from the state is livelihood.

According to ‘2011 Census Snapshot: Out-Migration from Bihar: Major Reasons and Destinations’, a study published in the Journal of Migration Affairs, 24% of the total migration in the country is for livelihood, while in Bihar, this ratio stands at 55%. Most of them work in the informal sector, where holidays are limited and work is more, making it almost impossible for them to get leave. 

As a result, the sudden announcement of the SIR has caused concern for lakhs of migrant workers like Paswan.

“Agar voter list se vanchit rah jayenge to sarkari yojnaon ka laabh bhi nahi milega...humara astitva hi khatm ho jayega (If we are left out of the voter list, we will not get the benefit of government schemes…our existence will be over),” he said, adding, “Agar voter list wala jhamela nahi hota to abhi aate hi nahin (Had there not been this mess with the voters’ list, I would not have come).”

Ironically, after travelling so far for the sake of his and his family’s electoral presence, Paswan will not be able to come back to vote. He won’t get leave again. 

Paswan, a father of three, earlier worked in a thread manufacturing factory in Delhi and had returned to Bihar during the Covid-19 lockdown. At the time, the state government had conducted skill mapping of all migrant workers and promised them work in Bihar itself. That, however, never happened, and Paswan found himself on the move again. 

Migrant worker Mukesh Paswan spent 5000 rupees to return home to Akbarpur from Hyderabad which is 25 percent of the salary he gets  working in a rice mill.  Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

He can still count himself among the lucky ones. Some of his colleagues did not even get leave, like the four others who operate the machine at the rice mill with him. It takes five people to operate the machine and if one goes on leave, the chances for the other four immediately drop.  

A similar fate is shared by Sanjay Ram (45), whose 85-year-old mother, Chameli Devi, sits on a cot in a small room in the inner corner of their moss-covered old and kuchha house in Akbarpur village. Chameli Devi has kept the Aadhaar and voter cards of Sanjay, her younger son and his wife Rinku Devi (40) safely in a polythene bag. Sanjay works at a thread-making factory in Delhi and stays there with his family, and Chameli Devi is left with a lone companion - her walking stick. 

The family hails from the Kahar caste, which falls under EBC (Extremely Backward Classes). Chameli Devi, when she spoke to The Migration Story, did not know that the ECI is revising the voters’ list and that her son and daughter-in-law will have to submit their documents in person. 

On being told that voters will have to fill a form and give their citizenship proof, she got worried and showed the voter ID cards and Aadhaar cards, “E se kaam na hotai (Will these not suffice)?” 

85-year-old Chameli Devi sits in her room in Akbarpur village of Nalanda district in Bihar. Her younger son, Sanjay Ram (45) and his wife Rinku Devi (40), who have migrated to Delhi for work and may not come for the SIR process.  Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

She added that Sanjay does not have enough money to come home in time. Neither will he get leave, as he just found work a month and a half ago. 

“Petwa ke jaral hai, koi saukh na hai (He migrated for livelihood, it is not a hobby),” she said.

The village has around 1,000 families and most of them belong to the Dalit castes.

Brahmdev Bind, a local resident, said, “At least two people from every family of this village have migrated. And at least 50 families migrate seasonally. It is a good thing that the Election Commission has started this process in July. If it had started the process around Durga Puja, 80 percent of the population of these villages would have migrated to work in brick kilns and hardly anyone would have made it back.”

The Migration Story visited some of the homes where entire families have migrated, and no one had any contact details for them.

Sudhir Ram (62) from Akbarpur is worried that the names of his sons Shishupal (30) and Vikram (20) will be deleted from the electoral roll. Both migrated to Haryana for work about two months ago.  The younger son has a job in a garment factory in Ludhiana, while the elder one is still looking.

“I am worried about what will happen to them. If their names are removed from the voter list here,  then it means they are not citizens here. When they are not citizens, they can't even call their house home. Then, they will not be able to benefit from government facilities,” a worried Sudhir Ram said. 

Sudhir Ram poses for a picture in the coourtyard of his house. He fears that if his sons’ names are removed from the voter list here,  they will lose their citizenship. Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

Sudhir Ram had migrated when he was just 20 years old. “Somehow, I passed my intermediate exams, but we had no money to study further, so I migrated to Punjab. Later, I moved to other states like Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat,” he said. 

He returned in 2002 when he fell seriously ill and he didn’t migrate after that. Knowing what a migrant worker’s life is like, he feels that the Election Commission should have taken steps for migrant workers, so that they will not need to come home for this. 

The ECI has said that migrant workers can download enumeration forms from its website and submit them online with the requisite documents. However, not all migrant workers are educated or tech-savvy. According to data shared by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), only 15% youths in Bihar can send an email with an attached file, and only 18% can copy and move files from one folder to another.

Migration to the Gulf 

Md. Jumarati, 60, a resident of flood prone Nirmali village of Supaul district, sits in front of his thatched house in July. His son Md. Sajjo, a voter added in voter list after 2003,  works in a marble factory in Saudi Arabia and may not come for the ongoing SIR. Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

Migration from Bihar is not confined to just within the country. According to data from the Bihar Economic Survey 2024-25, a total of 16,83,100 passports were issued from Bihar in the last five years between 2019-20 and 2023-24. 

Md. Jumarati, 60, a resident of flood-prone Nirmali village of Supaul district, is worried about the process, as his 32-year-old son Md. Sajjo works in a marble factory in Saudi Arabia.

Md. Sajjo was added to the voter list after 2003, and as the ECI considers this to be the last intensive revision, he will need to submit his citizenship proof along with voter card details of his parents.  But, he has not filled the enumeration form, as he is away for work. 

“When I asked the local sarpanch about it, he told me I could get it filled by anyone else,” said Jumarati. “So I have got his forms filled and submitted.” 

This isn’t strictly allowed, but since Sajjo is out of the country, Jumarati doesn’t see any other option. 

60-year-old Md. Jumarati, a resident of flood prone Nirmali village of Supaul district, standing in front of his thatched house in July. He is a little worried about the process as his 32-year-old son Md. Sajjo, a voter added in voter list after 2003,  works in a marble factory in Saudi Arabia and may not come.

Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

“A migrant worker can download an enumeration form from the ECI website and upload it after filling it. If the worker is not so tech-savvy, his family in the village can download the form and send it to the worker on WhatsApp. The worker can get a printout of the form, fill it, and then send a soft copy back to his family members, who can submit it to the BLO,” a senior official from the ECI told The Migration Story. 

A farmer by profession, Md Jumarati incurs losses every year when the Kosi river floods his village.

"Initially, I wanted my son to come, but when I called him, he told me that his boss would not grant him leave. Additionally, it will cost thousands of rupees. He started work just a couple of months ago, and has no money for the trip,” he said. 

Meanwhile, Tausif Khan, ward councillor and resident of Maner, about 35 kilometres from the state capital of Patna, is busy meeting families whose relatives are out of India and getting photos of their passports and other necessary details. According to him, at least 300 youths from his locality have migrated to Gulf countries and will not be coming for the SIR process.

Ward councillor Tausif Khan sitting at his office in Maner town, about 35 kilometres from state capital Patna. He has been trying to contact voters working in Gulf nations. Umesh Kumar Ray/The Migration Story

“There are many who have migrated to Dubai and Saudi Arabia for their livelihood. Now tell me, what should we do? We are asking their families and getting their digital signatures so that their forms are filled and submitted,” he said.

Booth Level Officers (BLOs), too, have their job cut out for them. Since it is the BLO’s responsibility to get enumeration forms filled, uploaded and submitted to the block office, they are working overtime to complete the process on time. 

“We are calling them up and asking them to send their photo and Aadhaar card details on WhatsApp, and filling the forms of migrant workers ourselves,” a BLO said. 

But then, this is easier said than done. Because, as the same BLO says to sum up the situation, “Every household has at least one person living out of the State.”

Umesh Kumar Ray is a Bihar-based freelance journalist. He reports on labour, human rights, climate change, politics and a host of other issues.

This is the first in a two-part series on the impact of electoral roll revision on Bihar’s migrants