<p>Bengaluru: With the government carving out 368 wards without expanding the Greater Bengaluru Area (GBA), the three mainstream parties face a tough electoral fight against new entrants and fresh faces.</p>.<p>The GBA currently remains the same size as the now-dissolved Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). </p>.<p>The government had earlier proposed 500 wards, but settled on increasing the number by 170 despite pressure from former councillors.</p>.Ward boundaries fixed for Greater Bengaluru Authority's five corporations.<p>As per the latest figures, most wards across four corporations will have around 40,000 residents, though the voter count may be lower.</p>.<p>In the Bengaluru East City Corporation, each ward may have only 26,000 people. Official ward-wise population figures are yet to be released.</p>.<p>The number of votes required to win could fall between 5,000 and 10,000.</p>.<p>Traditionally, contests in the BBMP were dominated by the BJP and Congress, with JD(S) playing kingmaker. Now, the Aam Aadmi Party, Karnataka Rashtra Samithi, Bengaluru NavaNirmana Party, and the Social Democratic Party of India are expected to add to the competition.</p>.<p><strong>Frequent changes</strong></p>.<p>Frequent changes to the ward structure — the third in the last four years — have created confusion.</p>.<p>The government revised ward numbers from 198 to 225 in 2022, then to 243 in 2023, though the BBMP functioned on the old 198-ward model. Engineers and citizens were left perplexed as numbers kept shifting.</p>.<p>However, the new delimitation is expected to ease the burden in areas like Mahadevapura and KR Puram, where some wards had population close to 1 lakh, making administration and development difficult.</p>.<p><strong>Raise objections by Oct 15</strong></p>.<p>Citizens and political parties can submit objections or suggestions to the draft delimitation of wards, which fall under the Greater Bengaluru Area, within 15 days.</p>.<p>Submissions must be made to the Additional Chief Secretary, Urban Development Department, Room No 436, 4th Floor, Vikasa Soudha, Bengaluru-560001, by 5 pm on October 15.</p>.<p>“The objections/suggestions received within the stipulated period will be considered and action will be taken to finalise the ward-wise delimitation,” the notification said.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: With the government carving out 368 wards without expanding the Greater Bengaluru Area (GBA), the three mainstream parties face a tough electoral fight against new entrants and fresh faces.</p>.<p>The GBA currently remains the same size as the now-dissolved Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). </p>.<p>The government had earlier proposed 500 wards, but settled on increasing the number by 170 despite pressure from former councillors.</p>.Ward boundaries fixed for Greater Bengaluru Authority's five corporations.<p>As per the latest figures, most wards across four corporations will have around 40,000 residents, though the voter count may be lower.</p>.<p>In the Bengaluru East City Corporation, each ward may have only 26,000 people. Official ward-wise population figures are yet to be released.</p>.<p>The number of votes required to win could fall between 5,000 and 10,000.</p>.<p>Traditionally, contests in the BBMP were dominated by the BJP and Congress, with JD(S) playing kingmaker. Now, the Aam Aadmi Party, Karnataka Rashtra Samithi, Bengaluru NavaNirmana Party, and the Social Democratic Party of India are expected to add to the competition.</p>.<p><strong>Frequent changes</strong></p>.<p>Frequent changes to the ward structure — the third in the last four years — have created confusion.</p>.<p>The government revised ward numbers from 198 to 225 in 2022, then to 243 in 2023, though the BBMP functioned on the old 198-ward model. Engineers and citizens were left perplexed as numbers kept shifting.</p>.<p>However, the new delimitation is expected to ease the burden in areas like Mahadevapura and KR Puram, where some wards had population close to 1 lakh, making administration and development difficult.</p>.<p><strong>Raise objections by Oct 15</strong></p>.<p>Citizens and political parties can submit objections or suggestions to the draft delimitation of wards, which fall under the Greater Bengaluru Area, within 15 days.</p>.<p>Submissions must be made to the Additional Chief Secretary, Urban Development Department, Room No 436, 4th Floor, Vikasa Soudha, Bengaluru-560001, by 5 pm on October 15.</p>.<p>“The objections/suggestions received within the stipulated period will be considered and action will be taken to finalise the ward-wise delimitation,” the notification said.</p>