Chhattisgarh: Preparations Underway for Municipal, Panchayat General and By-polls

Preparations for the general and by-elections 2026 for municipalities and three-tier Panchayati Raj institutions have formally begun in Chhattisgarh.

A high-level review meeting was held at the office of the Chhattisgarh State Election Commission in Nava Raipur, chaired by Ajay Singh, IAS (Retd.). The meeting focused on election preparedness, inter-departmental coordination, and time-bound completion of all mandatory procedures for the upcoming local body elections.

Addressing the officials, the State Election Commissioner directed that all required actions for the 2026 municipal and panchayat general and by-elections must be completed strictly within the prescribed timelines, ensuring smooth and transparent conduct of the polls.

Senior officials present at the meeting included the Secretary, Urban Administration and Development Department, Basavaraju S, Director Rimijus Ekka, Director, Panchayat and Rural Development Department Priyanka Rishi Mahobia, Secretary of the State Election Commission Shikha Rajput Tiwari, along with other concerned officers.

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During the meeting, it was informed that under municipal by-elections, two posts of Municipal Chairperson and 15 Councillor posts are currently vacant. Additionally, in four newly constituted Nagar Panchayats—Ghumka (Rajnandgaon), Bamhanidih (Janjgir-Champa), Shivanandanpur (Surajpur), and Palari (Balod)—four Chairperson posts and 60 Councillor posts are vacant and require elections.

Regarding three-tier Panchayati Raj institutions, five posts of Janpad Panchayat Members, 73 Sarpanch posts, and 965 Panch posts are vacant. In total, 1,043 posts at the Panchayat level are pending for general or by-elections.

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The State Election Commissioner also instructed that ward delimitation and reservation work be completed at the earliest in the newly formed Nagar Panchayats of Tamanar (Raigarh district) and Badi Kareli (Dhamtari district), and the commission be informed accordingly.

On voter list preparation, Ajay Singh directed that immediately after the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in Chhattisgarh, the updated electoral rolls should be obtained, and priority-based voter lists for local body by-elections should be prepared to ensure the timely completion of pending electoral processes.

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