New Delhi, March 15 -- The Election Commission on Sunday, 15 March, announced the poll dates for four states and a Union Territory .

Voting begins on 9 April, and votes will be counted on 4 May. The states include Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and the Union Territory of Puducherry, where elections are due in April-May.

The terms of the Assemblies in all these states/Union Territory ends between May and June. The West Bengal Assembly's term gets over on 7 May, Tamil Nadu's on 10 May, Assam's on 20 May, Kerala's on 23 May, and Puducherry's on 15 June.

The upcoming elections are crucial for both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the opposition's INDIA bloc.

Polls are to be held fo...