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New Delhi: The Election Commission of India on Sunday announced the schedule for Assembly elections in Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal and the Union Territory of Puducherry, with polling set to begin on April 9 and counting of votes scheduled for May 4.

Announcing the poll schedule at a press conference in New Delhi, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said the elections will be conducted in multiple phases across the five regions.

According to the schedule, polling in Kerala, Assam and Puducherry will be held on April 9. Tamil Nadu will go to the polls on April 23, while West Bengal will vote in two phases on April 23 and April 29.

The results for all five elections will be declared on May 4.

In addition to these Assembly elections, eight by-elections in Goa, Karnataka, Gujarat and Maharashtra will also be held during the same period.

The Chief Election Commissioner said that around 17.4 crore voters are eligible to participate in the upcoming elections across the four states and one Union Territory. Voting will take place at 2.19 lakh polling stations, with nearly 25 lakh election officials deployed to ensure the smooth and fair conduct of the electoral process.

Kumar emphasised that “pure electoral rolls form the bedrock of democracy,” adding that the Election Commission has made every effort to ensure that no eligible voter is left out while preventing the inclusion of ineligible names in the voter lists.

He also congratulated booth-level officers (BLOs) for their work during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which helped update and verify voter details ahead of the elections.

Highlighting the global interest in India’s electoral process, the CEC said representatives of poll bodies from 20 countries will visit the poll-bound states to observe and experience what he described as India’s “Festival of Democracy.”