Last Updated on March 15, 2026 7:36 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
BISHESHWAR MISHRA / NEW DELHI
The Election Commission today announced single-phase Assembly Polls in Assam, Keralam, Puducherry and Tamil Nadu, while in West Bengal, it will be held in two phases.
Announcing the poll schedule for the five States and Union Territory, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said the voting in Assam, Keralam and Puducherry will be held on the 9th of April.
Polling in Tamil Nadu will be held on the 23rd of April. The voting in West Bengal will be held on the 23rd and the 29th of next month. The polling in West Bengal in the first phase will cover 152 Assembly constituencies, while in the second phase, voting will be held across 142 Assembly constituencies.
Counting of votes in all four states and one Union Territory will be held on the 4th of May. Mr Kumar said, with the announcement of the poll schedule, the Model Code of Conduct has come into force with immediate effect in these States and the Union Territory.
Mr Kumar said that around 17.4 crore people are eligible to vote in elections to the five assemblies with 824 constituencies. This includes nearly 6.44 crore in West Bengal, 5.67 crore in Tamil Nadu, 2.70 crore in Kerala, 2.50 crore electors in Assam, and 9.44 lakh electors in Puducherry. The Chief Election Commissioner also underlined that there will be a total of 2.19 lakh Polling Stations and a total of 25 lakh election officials will be deployed across the 5 states and UT.
Mr Kumar said directions have been issued to ensure assured minimum facilities like drinking water, toilets and signage at every polling station. He added that recently, the ECI has taken 30 new initiatives to make elections more transparent. Mr Kumar also informed that there will be a maximum of 1200 electors at a polling station. There should be 100 per cent webcasting at all Polling Stations to ensure round-the-clock monitoring.
The term of the 294-member Legislative Assembly of West Bengal ends on 7th May, the term of the 126-member Legislative Assembly of Assam ends on 20th May, and the term of the 140-member Kerala Assembly expires on 23rd May. While the term of the 234 Member Assembly in Tamil Nadu ends on 10th May, in Puducherry, the term of the
30 Member Assembly expires on 15th June.
