SIR akin to Bihar across states to witness removal of dead voters from voter list
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New Delhi (PTI): The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across all states in the near future will witness a trend akin to Bihar where lakhs of deceased persons were removed from the voter list after several years.
The Election Commission believes that once the system of linking data of registrar of births and deaths with poll machinery takes firm roots, the issue of deceased persons being part of electoral rolls will eventually be settled.
Before the SIR commenced in Bihar, the state had 7.89 crore electors. After the exercise started, the draft roll published on August 1 had 7.24 crore electors, as nearly 65 lakh names were removed, including 22 lakh deceased persons.
Addressing the media here in August, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar had explained that nearly 22 lakh electors identified as deceased in Bihar did not die recently but were perhaps not recorded in the past.
Responding to a question, Kumar said during the previous normal revision of electoral rolls, enumeration forms were not handed out to every household.
Till people inform about deaths in their families, booth level officers (BLOs) have no means to know about such cases, he said.
During the intensive revision, when the exercise is more stringent, the poll machinery is more vigilant about the deletion of people who have either died or have shifted.
In a bid to update the voter list at a faster pace and make it free of errors, the poll authority will now obtain death registration data electronically from the Registrar General of India (RGI).
This will ensure that the electoral registration officers (EROs) receive timely information about registered deaths and allow the BLOs to reverify the information through field visits, without waiting for a formal request by the kin of the deceased.
"People have no incentive to inform the poll authorities of deaths in their families. But once the data linkage takes root, the presence of deceased persons in the voter list will eventually end," a functionary said.
The functionary said once data linkage with the RGI and municipal and rural bodies is firmly established, the voter list will be more error-free.
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India proposes preferential trade agreement with Mexico to deal with high tariffs
New Delhi (PTI): India has proposed a preferential trade agreement (PTA) with Mexico to help domestic exporters deal with the steep tariffs announced by the South American country, a top government official said on Monday.
Mexico has decided to impose steep import tariffs - ranging from about 5 per cent to as high as 50 per cent on a wide range of goods (about 1,463 tariff lines) from countries that do not have free trade agreements with Mexico, including India, China, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said that India has engaged with the country on the issue.
"Technical level talks are on...The only fast way forward is to try to get a preferential trade agreement (PTA) because an FTA (free trade agreement) will take a lot of time. So we are trying to see what can be a good way forward," he told reporters here.
While in an FTA two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate import duties on maximum number of goods traded between them, in a PTA, duties are cut or removed on a limited number of products.
Trading partners of Mexico cannot file a compliant against the decision on imposing high tariffs as they are WTO (World Trade Organisation) compatible.
The duties are within their bound rates, he said, adding that their primary target was not India.
"We have proposed a PTA because its a WTO-compatible way forward... we can do a PTA and try to get concessions that are required for Indian supply chains and similarly offer them concessions where they have export interests in India," Agrawal said.
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Citing support for local production and correction of trade imbalances, Mexico has approved an increase in MFN (most favoured nation) import tariffs (5-50 per cent) with effect from January 1, 2026 on 1,455 tariff lines (or product categories) within the WTO framework, targeting non-FTA partners.
Preliminary estimates suggest that this affects India's around USD 2 billion exports to Mexico particularly -- automobile, two-wheelers, auto parts, textiles, iron and steel, plastics, leather and footwear.
The measure is also aimed at curbing Chinese imports.
India-Mexico merchandise trade totalled USD 8.74 billion in 2024, with exports USD 5.73 billion, imports USD 3.01 billion, and a trade surplus of USD 2.72 billion.
The government has been continuously and comprehensively assessing Mexico's tariff revisions since the issue emerged, engaging stakeholders, safeguarding the interests of Indian exporters, and pursuing constructive dialogue to ensure a stable trade environment benefiting businesses and consumers in both countries.
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Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) Director General Ajay Sahai has said that Mexico's decision is a matter of concern, particularly for sectors like automobiles and auto components, machinery, electrical and electronics, organic chemicals, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and plastics.
"Such steep duties will erode our competitiveness and risk, disrupting supply chains that have taken years to develop," Sahai said, adding that this development also underlines the little urgency for India and Mexico to fast-track a comprehensive trade agreement.
Domestic auto component manufacturers will face enhanced cost pressures with Mexico hiking duties on Indian imports, according to industry body ACMA.
