The Election Commission said on July 21 that Bihar has become the country’s first state to have all polling stations with less than 1,200 voters. The poll panel said as many as 12,817 new polling stations have been added across Bihar to prevent long queues.
Bihar is going to assembly polls later this year.
As per Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the Bihar voter list order issued on June 24, 2025, the earlier ceiling of 1,500 voters at each polling station had been revised to 1,200 voters for each polling station.
“After adding 12,817 new polling stations, the total number of polling stations in Bihar will go up to 90,712 from the earlier 77,895. This major achievement of Bihar is to be followed by other States/UTs,” the poll panel said in a statement.
43.93 lakh voters not in their homes
The Election Commission also said that poll officials (CEO/DEOs/EROs/BLOs) have held meetings with the representatives of all political parties and have shared detailed lists of the 29.62 lakh voters whose forms have not been received so far and also of the nearly 43.93 lakh voters who were not found at their addresses.
“All the 12 major political parties have also been requested to connect with these remaining electors, through their District Presidents and nearly 1.5 lakh BLAs. This is to ensure that the entire election machinery, including the political parties, works together in a mission mode so that no eligible elector is left out from the draft Electoral Roll to be published on August 01, 2025,” the statement said.
The Election Commission also said that from August 1, 2025 any member of the public can file objections for any additions/deletions/rectifications in Draft Electoral Rolls, in accordance with the SIR order dated June 24.
Earlier in the day, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the centre of planning to conduct a Bihar-like SIR exercise in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said that she will never allow it in the state. She was speaking at the TMC’s Martyrs’ Day rally in Kolkata.
“BJP is planning to conductSIR-like exercise in Bengal, will never allow it,” she said at the rally. A special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is underway inBihar, just before the state goes to elections for its Legislative Assembly.
The West Bengal CM also said that the BJP and the Election Commission were conspiring against Bengal, and wanted to remove Bengalis from the voter list.
