West Bengal Polls: Kolkata Gears Up for Phase 2 with High-Level Security Review

A high-level coordination meeting involving election officials, police officers and commanders of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) will be held in Kolkata on Sunday to review preparedness for the second phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections , a senior official said.

The meeting will take place at the Dhana Dhanya Auditorium , just three days ahead of polling scheduled on April 29 , and is aimed at ensuring seamless coordination among all agencies involved in the electoral process.

“The meeting has been convened to assess the overall preparedness in the election districts under Kolkata and ensure smooth coordination among all agencies involved in the polling process,” the official told PTI.

Senior officials expected to attend include the Kolkata Police Commissioner , district election officers of Kolkata Uttar, Kolkata Dakshin and South 24 Parganas , along with general, police and expenditure observers appointed by the Election Commission. Returning officers of constituencies across the Kolkata region and company commanders of CAPFs will also be present.

According to officials, the focus of the review will be on deployment of security forces, vulnerability mapping of sensitive pockets, communication protocols between civil and police administration, and final readiness of polling personnel . The coordination meeting is part of the Election Commission’s broader effort to ensure free, fair and peaceful polling across the state.

The review gained significance in the backdrop of a high voter participation in the first phase of polling held on April 23, which recorded a turnout of over 93 per cent across 152 Assembly constituencies in 16 districts.

On the question of whether there will be any further transfers or reshuffle of officers , there is no indication or mention in the official briefing regarding any immediate changes in deployment. However, in line with standard Election Commission practice, minor adjustments or redeployments are sometimes carried out based on ground assessments during such review meetings , though no such action has been announced at this stage.