EC team to visit Assam from Monday to review poll preparedness

Chief Election CommissionerSunil Arora is scheduled to arrive in Assam on Monday on athree-day visit to take stock of preparations for assemblypolls due in March-April, officials said.

The CEC will hold separate meetings with seniorofficials of the state government, including the chiefsecretary, home secretary, director general of police, chiefelectoral officer and police nodal officer.

He will also hold discussions with leaders ofpolitical parties, election related Central and stateregulatory authorities, district election officers and SPs,they said.

The CEC will be accompanied by Election CommissionersSushil Chandra and Rajiv Kumar, Director General of theElection Commission of India (ECI) Dharmendra Sharma, DeputyElection Commissioner Chandra Bhusan Kumar, Senior PrincipalSecretary Narendra N Butolia, Director of Expenditure PankajSrivastava and EVM consultant Vipin Katara.

A six-member team of the poll panel, led by Sharma, hadrecently visited the northeastern state.

Elections to the 126-member Assam assembly are likelyto be held in March-April.