Assembly polls in five states to begin on April 4; counting on May 19

Assembly elections in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala will begin on April 4 and end on May 16, the Election Commission announced on Friday. Counting of votes in all states will be held on May 19.

Model code of conduct came into effect in all these states.

Assam (two phases)
Number of constituencies - 126
Number of polling stations: 25,000
First phase: April 4 (65 seats)
Second phase: April 11 (61 seats)

West Bengal(six phases)
Number of constituencies - 294
Number of polling stations: 77,000
First phase: April 4 (18 seats) & April 11 (31 seats)
Second phase: April 17 (56 seats)
Third phase: April 21 (62 seats)
Fourth phase: April 25 (49 seats)
Fifth phase: April 30 (53 seats)
Sixth phase: May 5 (25 seats)

Tamil Nadu(single phase)
Number of constituencies - 234
Number of polling stations: 65,000
Date of polls: May 16

Kerala(single phase)
Number of constituencies - 140
Number of polling stations: 21,000
Date of polls: May 16

Puducherry(single phase)
Number of constituencies - 30
Number of polling stations: 913
Date of polls: May 16

Announcing the poll schedule, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi said about 17 crore voters will take part in this elections. Possession of ID cards is not enough for the voters to exercise their franchise, Zaidi said and added that the name of voters in the voters list is mandatory.

Zaidi said the commission will set up all women polling stations. Ramps will be provided at all polling stations for voters with disabilities.

For the first time in these polls, a symbol for NOTA (None Of The Above) will be provided on electronic voting machines. The symbol was made in consultation with National Institute of Design.

The assembly polls are crucial for the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after they faced major setbacks in recent polls in Delhi and Bihar.