The Election Commission (EC) has approved the rationalisation of polling stations across all 403 Assembly constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, reducing their number by 3,786, Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa said on Wednesday.Following the exercise, the total number of polling stations in the state has come down from 1,77,516 (1.77 lakh) to 1,73,730, (1.73 lakh) he said.The rationalisation was carried out according to the prescribed norm of 1,200 voters per polling station across all 75 districts. The process began on October 16, with proposals received from the districts subsequently sent to the Election Commission for approval.

The poll panel cleared the allocation proposals on Wednesday.Rinwa said the draft electoral roll under the Special Summary Revision (SSR), being conducted with January 1, 2027, as the qualifying date, will now be published at the 1,73,730 approved polling stations. The SSR is an exercise conducted by the EC to update electoral rolls by adding eligible new voters, correcting existing entries and removing names of deceased, shifted or otherwise ineligible electors.Following the revision, all district election officers have been directed to ensure the deployment of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) at the newly approved polling stations.

Voters whose polling stations have changed must be informed in writing through their respective BLOs. BLO supervisors will regularly monitor the exercise, while Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) have been asked to personally inspect the arrangements.The Chief Electoral Officer has also directed BLOs to ensure that all members of a family are enrolled in the same section of the electoral roll.

If, after publication of the draft roll, family members are found registered at different polling stations, the necessary corrections must be made through Form 8, as per the prescribed procedure.District election officers and EROs have also been instructed to share the list of all approved polling stations with representatives of recognised political parties.The election authorities have been asked to publicise the changes extensively in the affected areas so that voters are informed about their new or relocated polling stations well in advance and do not face inconvenience during polling.- Ends