NEW DELHI/NEW YORK (TIP): The Election Commission on Thursday, November 3,  announced two-phase assembly polls in Gujarat, as voting for the first-leg will take place on December 1 and for the second on December 5. The counting of votes will be taken up on December 8 along with Himachal Pradesh. Announcing the decision of the poll panel Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said, 89 assembly segments will go to the polls in the first phase on December 1, and 93 seats in second phase on December 5. The CEC said there are over 4.9 crore electors eligible to vote this year. There will be more than 51,000 polling stations, which are going to be set up, including more than 34,000 in rural areas. Ahead of the polls, the Centre has deployed 160 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces to the state. The term of the 182-member state assembly ends on February 18, 2023. With the announcement of the election schedule, the Model Code of Conduct has (MCC) come into effect in the state. The much awaited, high-stake polls are seeing a three-cornered contest among the BJP, the Congress and the AAP. The BJP has been in power in the state – Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home turf — for over two decades.