Amidst rising temperatures, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has extended the voting time in 1,700 polling stations across four parliamentary seats of Bihar (Banka, Madhepura, Khagaria, and Munger) by two hours from 7 am to 6 pm. The extension applies to the next three phases of parliamentary polls in the state. This decision aims to facilitate smooth polling and potentially increase voter turnout, which saw a decline of 4.21% in the first phase of polling.