The Hindu : National : West Bengal fourth phase polls today

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 03, 2006

National

National

West Bengal fourth phase polls today

Special Correspondent

KOLKATA: The fourth and penultimate round of Assembly elections in West Bengal is to be held on Wednesday when 57 constituencies across three districts — Burdwan, Murshidabad and Birbhum — go to the polls to decide the fate of 288 candidates. The number of voters in the region is more than 9.3 million.

The first three rounds of elections that covered 187 constituencies were held on April 17, 22 and 27. The total number of seats in the State is 294.

Prominent among those in the fray in Wednesday's poll are the State's Industries Minister, Nirupam Sen, the Power Minister, Mrinal Banerjee, the Minister for Animal Resources, Anisur Rahaman and the leader of the Congress in the State legislature, Atish Sinha.

While Burdwan district, considered the rice bowl of the State in which is also located the Asansol-Durgapur industrial belt, is a stronghold of the Communist Party of India [Marxist], a keen contest is expected in Murshidabad district where the Congress has fared well in past elections but has a few rebel candidates pitted against its official nominees in some areas this time around.

Massive security arrangements have been made for the polls. Nearly 400 companies of Central paramilitary forces have been deployed in the three districts. The number of constituencies in Burdwan district is 26, in Murshidabad 19 and in Birbhum12.

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