Preparations for the Kolkata Municipal Corporation elections have accelerated, with officials beginning a review of boundaries covering around 4,500 polling booths after the civic body’s ward structure was expanded from 144 to 209 wards.
A meeting of all 16 municipal returning officers was held at the KMC headquarters on Saturday, according to a report by Sanmarg. The review is intended to determine the correct polling centre for each booth before the election process begins.
The exercise has become necessary because the recent delimitation changed the number and configuration of KMC wards. With more wards now forming the municipal electoral map, officials must reassess which polling booths fall within each ward and whether existing polling locations remain suitable after the reorganisation.
According to the report, officials will identify new polling locations if a booth no longer has a polling centre after the boundaries are redrawn. The process is therefore expected to involve both the allocation of booths to wards and the confirmation of physical locations where voters will cast their ballots.
The review is taking place as the city prepares for a possible KMC election in the final week of November. Sanmarg reported that the election notification could be issued before 31 October, although the report did not cite a published notification confirming the date.
The timing of the booth review is significant for voters because changes in ward boundaries can alter the constituency and polling centre associated with a residential address. Any changes to booth locations or ward assignments will need to be reflected in election records and communicated before polling. The report does not provide details of a public notice, voter-information schedule or final list of polling stations.
Kolkata Municipal Corporation is currently functioning without an elected board. The civic body is being administered by IAS officer Smita Pandey, according to the report. In this arrangement, election officials are preparing the polling structure while the municipal administration continues to operate without elected councillors.
The booth review follows the larger delimitation exercise that increased the number of KMC wards by 65. The change means that the election machinery must align polling arrangements with a substantially revised municipal map before the notification and subsequent stages of the election process.
The next formal milestone is the possible publication of the election notification before 31 October. Until that notification is issued, the final polling schedule, booth list and election timetable remain subject to official confirmation.