Kolkata: The Ministry of Home Affairs has granted Y-plus category armed security cover to the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, deploying personnel from the Central Industrial Security Force following an assessment of potential threats, officials said.
The enhanced security arrangement came into force on Friday, coinciding with the commencement of the hearing phase under the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in the state. The revision exercise is considered a critical and sensitive process ahead of forthcoming elections, prompting the Centre to step in to ensure the safety of the state’s top election official.
Under the revised security protocol, CISF commandos will provide round-the-clock protection to the Chief Electoral Officer during official travel, at the office premises, and at the official residence. The Y-plus cover includes armed close-protection officers and reflects heightened security concerns during the politically charged period of electoral scrutiny.
The Special Intensive Revision is being carried out across West Bengal to verify voter credentials, eliminate duplicate or ineligible entries, and maintain the accuracy of electoral rolls. The process involves multiple layers of verification through booth-level officers, electoral registration officers, and structured hearings to address claims and objections related to voter inclusion, deletion, or correction.
The hearing phase began on December 27 for nearly 32 lakh electors who were unable to trace their own names or those of their parents or grandparents in the 2002 electoral roll. During this phase, election authorities are recording and verifying identification documents of these so-called “unmapped” electors. The hearings are scheduled to continue until February 7, 2026.
Each Assembly constituency is expected to host around 11 hearing tables across venues such as schools and government buildings. According to sources in the Chief Electoral Officer’s office, the process will engage 294 electoral registration officers, over 3,200 assistant electoral registration officers, approximately 4,600 micro-observers, and more than 80,000 booth-level officers across the state.
The Election Commission of India has also appointed micro-observers from among existing Group B Central government employees in West Bengal to closely monitor and scrutinise the hearing process, underscoring the importance attached to transparency and accuracy in the revision exercise.
