Kolkata, March 21 -- The Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) office relocated from its long-standing address at 21, Netaji Subhas Road to new premises in the Shipping Corporation of India building on Saturday and is expected to begin full-fledged operations from the new location starting Monday. The CEO's office has been functioning from the second and third floors of the Balmer Lawrie building at Netaji Subhas Road since 2009. With a substantial increase in staff strength in recent years, the existing office faced space constraints and other logistical challenges. Concerns were also raised over security arrangements at NS Road. During the ongoing SIR process, prolonged protests were held outside the office premises, intensifying the demand for relocation.
Work on developing infrastructure at the Shipping Corporation building began two to three months ago. "The new premises is significantly larger and will allow more staff to work together efficiently," said a senior official of the state CEO office . Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari had repeatedly called for shifting the office, citing security and administrative concerns. The CEO's office operates under the state Home Department. Despite the Election Commission seeking independent status, no response from the state has kept it under the Home Department. Interestingly, the new office will be housed in a Central government-owned facility with Central Security Forces already deployed. Sources said security for the CEO and officials will continue to be handled by Central Forces at the new premises.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.