New Delhi, Dec 14 (PTI) Kickstarting its tour to assess preparedness of poll-bound states, a team of the Election Commission would visit Punjab from Wednesday.

This would be the Commission's first visit to a state going for assembly elections early next year.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Shocker: 45-Year-Old Woman Raped by Intoxicated Man in Mathura, Accused Arrested.

The EC may announce dates for polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa and Punjab sometime in January, it is learnt.

After visiting Punjab on Wednesday and Thursday, the Commission could visit Goa sometime next week and Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Manipur later.

Also Read | Omicron Variant of COVID-19 Will Not Affect India the Way Delta Did, Says Top Virologist Dr Shahid Jameel.

While the term of the Uttar Pradesh assembly ends in May next year, the terms of the legislative assemblies of other four states end on different dates in March, 2022.

The Commission usually visits poll-bound states before announcing election schedule. But there have been instances when it has visited states after announcement of elections.

During their visit to Punjab, Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra and Election Commissioners Rajiv Kumar and Anup Chandra Pandey would meet state officials and other stakehokders to assess the ground situation.

Updating voters list and adherence to Covid-protocol are some of the issues which the Commission could assess.

The EC team may also meet representatives of political parties during its visit.

Senior EC officials have been to these states, including Uttar Pradesh, in the recent past to assess the preparedness.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)