11.9 lakh gap between male and female voter figures on EC list
Times of India | 7 January 2025
12 Kolkata: The male-female electoral gap in Bengal is now only 11.9 lakh. According to the final data released by the Election Commission on Monday, there are approximately 3.8 crore male voters in Bengal, and 3.7 crore female voters.
In the last phase of electoral roll revision, over two lakh women voters have registered for voting; for males, it has been lesser, at 1.7 lakh.
The EC data shows a deletion of 6.9 lakh voters, which included 4 lakh voters who expired and 2.8 lakh voters who shifted, with repetitions of over 9,000 voters. The overall increase is around 0.5%, an official said.
Bengal has 7.6 crore voters, including 1,811 third-gender voters.
The male-female voters' gender ratio had decreased to its lowest ever in Bengal a year ago. According to 2024's electoral roll released by the Election Commission, there were 968 female voters in the state for every 1,000 males. In 2025, it has increased to 969.
The rise in female voters is significant, compared to that of 2019, when it had been 949. Since then, it has been steadily rising. It had increased to 961 before the 2021 assembly polls, in which a higher percentage of women (81.7%) had exercised their franchise than males (81.4%).
An EC official said this time voters in the age group of 18-19 who enrolled are 1.7% while it was 2% in 2024. He said the slight decrease in the enrolment of teenage voters might be because now the 18-19-year-old voters can enrol four times a year.
"Moreover, in 2025, only the KMC polls along with the election for the other municipal local bodies might take place. But people can enrol till Nov 2025, till the roll draft is published, and get enlisted as voters for the 2026 assembly polls," an official said.
In a statement on Monday, the EC said, "Under the Continuous Updation programme, one may enrol one's name in the electoral rolls, if otherwise eligible. The Chief Electoral Officer, Bengal, appeals to the electors of the state to verify their electoral status in the electoral rolls."
Voters can check details of assembly constituency and polling station in the electoral roll by calling the toll-free number 1950 or by logging in to www.voters.eci.gov.in or www.ceowestbengal.nc.in