West Bengal Chief Secretary Sends Compliance Report to EC Ahead of Assembly Polls

PTI, February 17, 2026, New Delhi : The West Bengal Chief Secretary has sent a compliance letter to the Election Commission (EC), following directions issued by the poll authority, including actions against certain officials and the payment of enhanced remuneration to booth level officers (BLOs).

EC officials stated that West Bengal Chief Secretary Nandini Chakravarty submitted her compliance report before the 5 pm deadline set by the Election Commission.

"The Commission, which is currently visiting Assam, will examine the report on its return from the review tour," an official said.

Chakravarty was called by the EC after taking over as Chief Secretary in January this year. West Bengal is set to hold assembly elections in the next two months. Additionally, the EC’s top brass wanted to discuss several pending issues with her, the official added.

During a meeting with Chakravarty on February 13, the EC had asked her to comply with its directions by February 17. These directions included payment of enhanced remuneration to BLOs and lodging FIRs against errant officials who had wilfully violated norms during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

The EC had reprimanded the West Bengal government for failing to release the increased honorarium for booth level officers and additional payments for the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls.

In August last year, the poll panel had doubled the annual remuneration of BLOs from Rs 6,000 to Rs 12,000 and raised the payment for BLO supervisors from Rs 12,000 to Rs 18,000. It also approved honorariums for electoral registration officers (EROs) and assistant electoral registration officers (AEROs).

Another key issue discussed was the EC’s directions for the state government to lodge FIRs against officials who "wilfully flouted" norms during the SIR process. Last year, the EC had instructed the West Bengal government to file cases against four officers. While the government suspended them and initiated departmental proceedings, no FIRs had been lodged against them.