E-Paper
Punjab gets 879 new polling stations after rationalisation
Punjab chief electoral officer Anindita Mitra said this exercise was undertaken to balance elector strength per polling station, improve voter facilitation, and strengthen transparency in the electoral process
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has carried out rationalisation of polling stations across Punjab as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026, increasing the total number of polling stations in the state from 24,453 to 25,332
Punjab chief electoral officer Anindita Mitra said this exercise was undertaken to balance elector strength per polling station, improve voter facilitation, and strengthen transparency in the electoral process.
She said that a very intensive process of physical verification of every polling booth and availability of Assured Minimum Facilities (AMF) was conducted during the rationalisation exercise.
The highest increase in the number of polling stations is in Amritsar, from 2,134 to 2,240 after rationalisation, followed by Ludhiana where the number is up from 2,927 to 3,031, according to information shared by Mitra at a press conference here on Tuesday after the completion of the house-to-house enumeration phase of SIR. In SAS Nagar, the number of polling stations has gone up from 838 to 936.
Describing the SIR enumeration phase as successful, the CEO said that out of 2,14,61,043 registered electors as on June 9, over 1,93,94,408 citizens actively participated by submitting their enumeration forms and the total number of uncollectable forms stands at 20,66,635. Of those who submitted their signed enumeration forms, 12,80,125 electors remained unmapped as their particulars could not be matched with the last SIR’s records (2003). “The Electoral Registration Officers will issue them notices asking them to submit relevant documents. The process of issuance of notices to unmapped electors, in compliance with instructions of ECI, will be initiated from August 13,” she said.
Mitra said the successful completion of the enumeration phase was made possible through the dedicated efforts of 23 district election officers, 117 electoral registration officers, 234 assistant electoral registration officers, 2,501 supervisors, and 24,453 booth-level officers working under the overall electoral framework of the office of the chief electoral officer, Punjab. She said valuable support was also extended by representatives of all recognised political parties, especially the 87,966 booth-level agents (BLAs) appointed by them.
The CEO urged all electors to check and verify the draft roll that will be published on August 13. “In case any eligible voter has been left out due to unavoidable reasons, they should actively participate in the upcoming claims and objections period, from August 13 to September 12, to ensure their names are included in the final electoral roll,” she said. The disposal of claims and objections will continue from August 13 to October 8, and the final electoral roll will be published on October 12.
