West Bengal Prepares for Major Electoral Overhaul with New Polling Booths

West Bengal is preparing for a significant expansion in its polling infrastructure as nearly 14,000 additional polling booths are anticipated ahead of the 2026 assembly elections. The Election Commission has organized an all-party meeting on August 29 to deliberate on the proposed reorganisation of polling stations, officials have confirmed.

Currently, the state houses over 78,000 polling booths distributed across 294 assembly constituencies. To streamline the voting process, especially in areas where stations serve over 1,200 electors, these will be bifurcated. The aim is to facilitate smoother voting procedures, and this expansion will potentially bring the total number of booths to approximately 92,000.

However, this development arrives amid disciplinary actions taken against several electoral officers for irregularities in voter roll revisions. The Election Commission is diligently monitoring the compliance of West Bengal's electoral processes to ensure timely completion ahead of the next electoral event.

(With inputs from agencies.)