The full bench of the Election Commission (EC), led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, will visit Kolkata from March 8 to 10 to review electoral preparations and security arrangements ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections. The EC has yet to announce the poll dates.

The EC team will reach Kolkata on the night of March 8 and stay in the city till March 10.

According to sources, Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti will be accompanied by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi. Senior Deputy Election Commissioners Ganesh Bharti, Manesh Garg, and Pawan Kumar Sharma will also be part of the team, sources added.

The meetings will begin on March 9, and the Commission is likely to first meet with representatives of political parties to discuss issues and suggestions.

“At around 12.30 pm, CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal will give a presentation to the Commission’s full bench on the situation relating to judicial adjudication and poll preparedness. The presentation will last for around 30 minutes,” said an official.

The Commission’s full bench will hold meetings with top bureaucrats and senior police officers of the state government, including Chief Secretary Nandini Chakraborty and the state’s acting Director General of Police Peeyush Pandey, on March 10. The meeting will start at 10 am.

After that, the EC team will meet electoral registration officers, assistant electoral registration officers and booth-level officers.

After the meeting with political parties, the EC delegation will be formally welcomed at the office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal. After this, the Commission will hold a meeting with district magistrates and superintendents of police. Police officers from various districts will report to the EC on security preparations and the law and order situation.