Number of Polling Stations to Increase in 12 States and UTs After SIR Exercise

PTI, NEW DELHI, OCT 29, 2025 :  In a bid to shorten voting queues, the 12 states and union territories that will undergo Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls next week will see an increase in the number of polling stations once the exercise is completed.

Bihar, where the voters' list cleanup exercise has already concluded, has become the first state in the country where every polling station now has a maximum of 1,200 electors, down from 1,500 previously. The rationalization exercise will mean that the 12 states and UTs will have more polling stations, similar to Bihar, where the number has risen to 90,712 from 77,895.

The rationalization is expected to ensure that voters will spend less time in queues while waiting for their turn to cast their vote. According to instructions issued to the chief electoral officers of the states and UTs where the SIR exercise will begin on November 4, new polling stations are to be set up in high-rise buildings, colonies with resident welfare associations, and slum clusters.

District election officers will consult political parties on the establishment of new polling stations. The Election Commission (EC) has directed that special care be taken to ensure that all members of one family are assigned to the same polling station.

The states and Union Territories where the SIR exercise will take place are: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.

The EC has been working to ensure that voters do not have to travel more than 2 km to reach a polling station wherever possible. Polling stations have also been set up in high-rise buildings and societies in recent elections to ensure greater voter participation.