The Election Commission will on Saturday announce the dates for assembly polls in five states at 3.30 pm. The poll body has convened a press conference in which it will declare the schedule for the polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur.

While the term of the current Uttar Pradesh assembly is ending in May, those of the other four assemblies are ending on different dates in March.

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On Thursday, the EC reviewed the COVID situation with the Union health secretary and health experts, collecting inputs on necessary safety measures to be ensured during the democratic exercise and emphasising the need for vaccination of all eligible people in five poll-bound states.

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In a separate meeting, the poll panel discussed the law and order situation in the five states — Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur — with Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla.

Elections are due in the five states and the Commission is expected to announce poll dates in the next few days.

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Besides Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan, the meeting to assess the COVID situation was also attended by AIIMS director Randeep Guleria and ICMR’s Balram Bhargava, sources aware of the interactions said.

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The poll panel carried out a “complete review” of the COVID status and took inputs from medical experts on “safety measures to be ensured” during campaigning and polling.