The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the dates for Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly elections. During a press conference, CEC Sunil Arora said the polling will take place on October 21 while results will be announced on October 24.

Both Maharashtra and Haryana are the first states to go to polls after the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year.

While the term of Maharashtra assembly ends on November 9, that of the Haryana assembly expires on November 2. With the announcement, the Model Code of Conduct has come into effect in the two states.

Arora even asked parties to go eco-friendly while campaigning. “Election campaigns impose an environmental cost upon us. We appeal to political parties to avoid use of plastic and use only environment-friendly material in their campaigns,” says Sunil Arora.

Maharashtra, which has a total of 288 assembly seats, will see a direct contest between the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena combine and Congress-NCP alliance. Whereas, in 90-member Haryana assembly, the ruling BJP will aim to fend off Congress to secure a second term.

Special security arrangements will be made for LWE affected areas in Gadchiroli and Gondia in Maharashtra.

The expenditure ceiling for all the candidates in both the states will be Rs 25 lakh, says Sunil Arora.

The Assembly elections in these two states are politically significant as the BJP is in power in both Maharashtra and Haryana. In 2014, the elections in Maharashtra and Haryana took place in October.