Election to be Held in India From April 16 to May 13

India Eelction

World Largest democracy Country India over 800million voters will decide the New Government, The Date of election to be held from 16th April to 13th May 2009 and the result will be declared by 16th May 2009.

Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswami said that 124 Lok Sabha constituencies would go to the polls April 16, followed by 141 on April 23, 107 on April 30, 85 on May 7 and 86 constituencies on the final day on May 13.

Gopalaswami said elections to the Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Sikkim assemblies would also take place simultaneously. State by-elections would also be held in Mizoram, Jharkhand and Karnataka (one seat each) and Nagaland (four seats).

The Lok Sabha election, the biggest such exercise in the world, will cost a whopping Rs.10,000 crore (Rs.100 billion), said a study by Centre for Media Studies.

Maharashtra and West Bengal would undergo polling over three phases. Eight states - Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Orissa and Punjab - would witness voting over two phases. Fifteen states would end the exercise within a day.

Troubled Jammu and Kashmir as well as Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, would see polling spread over five phases while Bihar would have four rounds of balloting.

Goapalaswami, set to retire April 20, Goapalaswami said 'We have taken serious note of illegal use of money power. The polling officers have been told to strictly monitor the expenditure"

There are 412 general category seats.

He Goapalaswami further added electoral rolls had been updated throughout the country and photo electoral rolls would be used in 522 of the 543 constituencies where polling would take place. In a house of 545, the president appoints two members of the Anglo-Indian community.

Monday's announcement comes a day after President Pratibha Patil rejected Gopalaswami's controversial suggestion to sack Election Commissioner Navin Chawla from the poll panel on grounds that he was biased. Chawla will take over from Gopalaswami when he retires.