New Delhi, March 17 -- The Election Commission of India on Saturday announced the dates for the 18th Lok Sabha elections. The elections will be held in seven phases starting from April 19 to June 1, informed Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC) Rajiv Kumar at a press conference in New Delhi. He was accompanied by newly-appointed Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S.S. Sandhu.

The counting of votes will be held on June 4 for the world's biggest election exercise in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi will bid for a third consecutive term. According to CEC Rajiv Kumar, there are 96.8 crore people eligible to cast a vote in the upcoming polls at over 12 lakh polling stations.

The first phase of elections will begin on April 19 w...