90 to 135, and 45 for women? Delimitation arithmetic could redraw Chhattisgarh's politics

Raipur: Delimitation could raise the number of seats in Chhattisgarh's assembly from 90 to 135, and if the women's reservation provision applies, 45 of those could be reserved for women, according to discussion in political circles.
For the state's politics, that would be a big shift. More seats would force every major party to redraw constituencies, rework candidate selection and recast caste equations. A large reserved quota for women would also require parties to build a bench of women candidates.
Separately, a 42-year-old contractor, Santosh Kumar Srivastava, died at the JD Steel plant in Borei-Rasmada in Durg district on the night of October 17 after molten iron fell on him. The metal is said to have been at a temperature of around 1,500 to 1,600 degrees Celsius.
In addition, all passenger trains in the Bastar region have been cancelled till October 28. The earlier window had been fixed at October 21, but it was extended because repair work could not be completed. The administration has urged travellers to check the new schedule before setting out.
Chhattisgarh's assembly currently has 90 members. Any expansion would follow a delimitation exercise, and the women's reservation provision would determine how many of the new seats are set aside. Reports have presented the 135-seat and 45-seat figures as possibilities, not as a final decision.
Chhattisgarh has been discussing the possibility of more assembly seats for some time, and any change to the state's electoral map would have to be notified by the Election Commission. Until that happens, the figures doing the rounds remain speculative rather than settled.