West Bengal Elections 2021 phase 1 polling: Timings, seats and all you need to know

West Bengal is all set to go for voting on Saturday (March 27) in the first phase of Assembly elections. This is one of the most anticipated polls in recent times as it decides the fate of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress in West Bengal.

Banerjee has been ruling her home turf for two terms now and she aims to score a hat-trick this time. But the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is leaving no stones unturned to change the tide in West Bengal.

Here is all you need to know about the West Bengal Elections 2021

West Bengal Election 2021: Date and schedule

The West Bengal Elections 2021 will be conducted over two months in eight phases for a total of 294 assembly seats in 23 districts of the state. Out of all the seats, 68 are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 16 for the Scheduled Tribes.

Phase 1- March 27, 2021
Phase 2- April 1, 2021
Phase 3- April 6, 2021
Phase 4- April 10, 2021
Phase 5- April 17, 2021
Phase 6- April 22, 2021
Phase 7- April 26, 2021
Phase 8- April 29, 2021

Phase 1 of West Bengal Elections 2021

The polls will for phase 1 be contested for 30 constituencies spread over five districts. These districts are Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram, Paschim Midnapore Part-I and Purba Midnapore Part-I. The last date of nomination was March 9 the last date to withdraw candidature from the polls was March 12.

The polling time for phase 1 of the West Bengal Assembly Elections has been increased by 30 minutes by the Election Commission of India. Voters can cast their votes at their respective polling station from 8 am to 6:30 pm.

West Bengal Election 2021 results: The counting of votes and results for 294 constituencies will be announced on May 2, 2021.

West Bengal Elections 2021: Documents that can be used for identification at polling stations

Listed below are the documents that you can carry for the purpose of identification at polling stations:

EPIC (Voter ID card)
Passport
Driving License
Service Identity Cards with photograph issued to employees by Central/State Govt./PSUs/Public Limited Companies
Passbooks with photograph issued by Bank/Post Office
PAN Card
Smart Card issued by RGI under NPR
MNREGA Job Card (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee)
Health Insurance Smart Card issued under the scheme of Ministry of Labour
Pension document with photograph
Official identity cards issued to MPs/MLAs/MLCs
Aadhaar Card