EC to set up Polling Booths inside six housing complexes in Kolkata

In a new initiative aimed at improving voter participation the Election Commission has decided to set up polling stations inside select housing complexes in Kolkata for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections.

According to officials six housing complexes in the city have been identified for this arrangement. Four are located in North Kolkata and two in South Kolkata.

The identified complexes include : Active Acres ( Entally ) , Silver Spring ( Entally ) , Lake District ( Beleghata ), Arjun Apartments (Maniktala ) , South City ( Rashbehari ) and Asha Co-operative (Rashbehari ).

Election officials said that these apartments were selected based on specific criteria . Each location must have at least 300 registered voters and suitable ground floor space to accommodate polling activities.

The move is not limited to Kolkata. The Election Commission had earlier announced plans to set up polling booths in 78 large housing complexes across West Bengal. This decision comes after authorities observed that a significant number of urban residents, particularly those living in high rise buildings, often skip voting due to distance, inconvenience, or safety concerns.
Officials estimate that nearly 10 percent of urban voters in the state live in such residential complexes, making this a crucial step towards improving voter turnout.

As part of the preparation , the EC had instructed district election officers to identify and map large housing societies . Authorities were asked to check for suitable spaces such as community halls or common areas that could be used as polling stations.

Traditionally schools and government buildings are used as polling stations. In Kolkata many schools are preparing for the elections . Officials believe that setting up booths near housing complexes may help ease logistical pressure.

Officials from the EC said that only residents of these apartments will be eligible to vote at the stations inside the complexes. “These polling stations are dedicated to the residents. Anyone who does not live in the complex will not be allowed to vote here,” said one official.

Debasish Basu, secretary of the South City Apartment Owners’ Association, said residents of South City have been voting at the South City International School for several previous elections. “There are two parts of the Assembly constituency covering all voters from South City apartments. Voters from both parts used to cast their votes in the school,” he told Metro.

An official said that district election officers (DEOs) have briefed their teams on the Election Commission’s six key objectives: to ensure that polling remains violence free, intimidation free and inducement free, with no instances of bogus voting or booth capturing, and no obstruction to voters travelling freely from their homes to polling stations.
“We have communicated to officials that any violation of these objectives can lead to action under the Representation of the People Act,” said Smita Pandey, DEO of north Calcutta.

Poll panel sources said south Calcutta has 1,093 polling stations across 412 locations, covering four Assembly constituencies — Ballygunge, Bhabanipur, Calcutta Port and Tollygunge. About 30 of these booths have been identified as “sensitive”. “A sensitive booth is designated based on past incidents or violence, repolling history or issues newly flagged by sector officers,” said an EC official, adding that identifying sensitive booths is a dynamic process.

In north Calcutta, 1,835 polling stations across 583 locations will cover seven Assembly constituencies — Beleghata, Chowringee, Cossipore Belgachhia, Entally, Shyampukur, Jorasanko and Maniktala.

The EC is also putting in place strict monitoring systems for the elections which include CCTV cameras and webcasting at polling booths , GPS tracking of election personnel and vehicles and control rooms for real time monitoring.

These measures will apply to all polling stations including those inside the housing complexes .

The initiative is part of a broader effort by the EC to increase voter turnout particularly in urban areas . By bringing polling stations closer to where people live , officials hope to make voting more convenient , specially for senior citizens and working professionals .​