Cabinet clears move to retain 66 wards under HMC

Kolkata: The state Cabinet has approved legal amendments to retain all 66 wards under the Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC).

The state government will table a Bill in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly to amend the Howrah Municipal Corporation Act, 1980, to give effect to the decision.

Bally Municipality was amalgamated with the HMC in 2015, increasing the total number of wards under the civic body to 66 from the earlier 50. However, citing administrative issues, the state government passed a Bill in 2021 to separate Bally Municipality from the HMC.

The amended Bill, however, did not receive the Governor’s assent at the time, when Jagdeep Dhankhar was in office.

In 2025, Governor CV Ananda Bose approved the Bill, which effectively meant that 16 wards would be separated from the jurisdiction of the HMC.

The state government has now decided to bring further amendments, arguing that the population under the HMC has doubled over the past decade. It has maintained that retaining all 66 wards is necessary to ensure better delivery of civic amenities.

Civic elections in the HMC were last held in 2013. Although elections were due in 2018, they could not be conducted owing to various issues. The civic body is currently being run by an administrator.

The latest Cabinet decision is expected to clear the way for elections to the Howrah Municipal Corporation.