"Holding elections or declaring the election programme is the prerogative of the Election Commission, but we are prepared to hold the polls any time," Sankaran told mediapersons.

On the directives of the Election Commission, the election branch has launched a special electoral roll revision programme from Tuesday. While the draft roll published on Tuesday will be followed by receipt of claims and objections in the office of electoral registration officers from April 20 to May 20, campaign dates for receiving claims and objections at designated locations will be published on April 24, 25 and May 8 and 9, disposal of claims and objections on June 21 and final rolls will be published on July 21.

The primary objective of the special drive is to update the rolls withreference to January 1, 1999 as the qualifying date, to make the entire rolls as clean and correct as possible with the maximum involvement of the electors and political parties, to complete the process of computerisation of electoral rolls and harmonise the rolls with the programme of electors' photo identity cards and to produce computerised rolls in the format prescribed by the EC.

The Chief Electoral Officer said necessary forms required for registering the name have been made available at the designated centres.

On the progress in providing photo identity cards, Sankaran said, while the programme will continue during the on-going special revision programme, so far 78.79 per cent of the voters have already been provided with the I-cards.

Sankaran said providing the electoral rolls of all the 288 Assembly constituencies on CD ROM will be another highlight of the campaign. "For each constituency, we have prepared a separate CD, which will be made available to the political parties and to individualsalso," Shankaran added.