The Kolkata Municipal Corporation has seen an unusual rush for domicile certificates over the past one-and-a-half months, a spike civic officials are linking directly to the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

According to officials, nearly 14,000 applications were received till January 31, a sharp jump from the usual monthly average of fewer than 200.

The bulk of these applications came after the SIR process began, with the resident certificate emerging as a key document for voters whose names were flagged or left out during verification.

Officials and Trinamool Congress councillors said the demand for domicile certificates has “shot up sharply” since the revision exercise started.

For many voters, the document has become essential to establish proof of residence during hearings conducted by election authorities.

Following instructions from chief minister Mamata Banerjee, the civic body opened dedicated counters at its headquarters and across borough offices to ensure residents are able to secure the required paperwork without difficulty.

A member of KMC’s mayor-in-council said the sheer number of applications received within such a short period has taken officials by surprise, calling the trend “unprecedented” compared to routine demand.

Applications submitted to the KMC are being forwarded to the Kolkata sector collector’s office, where documents undergo verification, including police checks. Final approval for issuing domicile certificates is granted by a WBCS-rank officer.

Civic officials said applications are currently being accepted mainly for requirements linked to the SIR process. The surge comes amid heightened political activity around the electoral roll revision.

Earlier, addressing a meeting of TMC booth-level agents, Banerjee accused the Centre and the Election Commission of bias in the SIR exercise and asked party workers to assist voters whose names had come under scrutiny.

Officials said efforts to speed up the issuance process gathered pace after Mayor Firhad Hakim announced that the system would be streamlined to help residents produce domicile proof during hearings.

Until recently, education-related domicile certificates were issued from Kolkata’s Town Hall, while councillors provided address-related residency attestations.

However, allegations that the CEO’s office was not accepting certificates issued by councillors during the revision prompted the KMC to introduce a centralised application and verification process.

Under the revised system, applicants submit requests at their respective borough offices. These are then routed through the KMC headquarters for scrutiny, after which certificates are issued at the borough level.

The move is also intended to help voters whose names did not feature in the initial mapping phase of the SIR.

Ruling party leaders have cited official figures stating that over 31.68 lakh voters across West Bengal were not covered in the first phase, while nearly six lakh names were excluded from draft rolls across 11 Kolkata Assembly segments alone.

Civic authorities said detailed guidelines have been shared with councillors to help residents understand documentation requirements, including Aadhaar cards and rent receipts where applicable.

Municipal officials expect demand for domicile certificates to remain high as the SIR exercise continues and more voters approach election authorities to establish their residency credentials.