12 January,2026 06:04 PM IST | Mumbai | Eeshanpriya MS
BMC chief Bhushan Gagrani holds a media briefing on BMC Election 2026. PIC/SAYYED SAMEER ABEDI
For the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Election, the civic body has set up 2,600 polling locations - 300 more than the 2,300 locations used during the 2024 Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha Election.
The decision has been taken to reduce congestion on roads and at polling locations.
A total of 10,231 polling booths will be spread across these 2,600 locations. Of these, 4,704 booths are in government premises, 782 within cooperative societies, and the remaining 5,125 in private premises.
As part of the upgraded voting system for the upcoming BMC Election 2026, the civic body has received 140 PADU machines (printing auxiliary display units) for the first time. These machines will serve as a backup in case of any technical issues during the vote-counting process.
The introduction of PADU machines is aimed at ensuring a smooth and uninterrupted counting process in the event of technical errors. These units print election results directly from the electronic voting machine (EVM) control unit at the end of the counting procedure.
In a statement on Monday, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said, "M3A voting machines from M/s Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Bengaluru, will be used for the BMC General Elections. During vote counting, the ballot unit must be connected to the control unit."
