Context
The 2023 Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill draws emphasis to the delineation of electoral constituencies, a crucial component of representative democracy, putting aside its political objectives. Defining and drawing the lines between these constituencies is known as delimitation.

Significance of timely delimitation  
·         Elections are typically regarded in India as a significant example of democracy in action. The process of drawing up these electoral boundaries, which affects how well voters' interests are represented and how many parliamentary seats each state will receive, is equally crucial yet sometimes disregarded.
·         The Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act of 1976, which froze the delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies based on the 1971 Census until the Census of 2001, is the reason why the number of Lok Sabha seats has stayed constant since the 1970s.
·         However, the Constitution (Eighty-Fourth Amendment Act) eventually extended this limit to 2026. Therefore, despite significant population growth since the 1971 Census, the seat distribution is still based on those numbers. The fundamental tenets of representative democracy are violated in this circumstance.
·         The portrayal of states as cohesive units and federalism both interact with delimitation.
·         Northern MPs represent more voters than their southern colleagues because the population of northern states has increased more quickly than that of southern states throughout time. Because of this, the upcoming delimitation exercise has important repercussions for both individual voters and states, particularly southern states, which, based on current population statistics, may lose parliamentary seats.

Challenges in carrying out the delimitation of constituencies  
·         There are several challenges associated with the delimitation process. First, there is the challenge of collecting and collating the population data that will be used to carry out the exercise. The Census scheduled for 2021 has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The next Census is scheduled for 2031. If the next Census is held as planned, the 1971 population figures will have had an impact on the allocation of Lok Sabha seats for more than 50 years.
·         The decision to freeze the delimitation process in 1976 was initially based on population control concerns and variations in birth rates between states. These concerns remain relevant today.
·         Once the Census and the subsequent delimitation are completed, any alteration in the numerical composition of the Lok Sabha will necessitate a constitutional change.
·         The second challenge is the qualitative considerations that will influence the redrawn electoral constituencies. If the process is solely based on the population proportions, the result will be more seats for the northern states because of their higher population. This could lead to mistrust among the southern states.
·         Concerns regarding changing district boundaries and renaming seats were expressed during a recent delimitation in Assam prior to the 2024 Assembly elections. These changes could have a substantial impact on the representation of particular communities.

Conclusion   
Questions about the distribution of MPs among election constituencies and the number of constituents each MP will represent arise as India gets ready to build a new Parliament building large enough to house over 800 MPs. This emphasises the necessity for a thorough discussion about delimitation as soon as possible to prevent further extensions of the Lok Sabha seat allocation freeze. This issue must be addressed and cannot be ignored.

LTX Mains Question
Q. Analyse the significance of constituency delimitation in a representative democracy like India while highlighting the difficulties involved.