Guwahati, April 7 (IANS) Over 49 percent of voters Monday cast their ballot in the first six hours of polling in five Lok Sabha constituencies in Assam, officials said.
Monday's polling kick-started the nine-phase 16th Lok Sabha polls in the country.
As balloting began from 7 a.m., people queued up at polling stations in the state's five constituencies - Tezpur, Jorhat, Kaliabor, Dibrugarh and Lakhimpur. Brisk polling was seen barring a few booths where the process was delayed due to technical snags in the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
The overall polling percentage in the five constituencies was 49.64 percent till 1 p.m., Assam's chief electoral officer said.
While 12 percent polling was recorded in the first two hours till 9 a.m., it went up to 36.44 percent by 11 a.m.
With 53.89 percent of polling, Tezpur recorded the highest voting so far among the five constituencies, followed by Kaliabor with 51.04 percent, Lakhimpur with 49.43 percent, Jorhat with 48.02 percent and Dibrugarh with 45.82 percent, the electoral office said.
Polling was peaceful in all the five constituencies, even as the day coincided with the 'Raising Day' of insurgent outfit United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA).
Although there were no direct threats by the militants this time, police and security forces were deployed in strength to ensure smooth polling.
An estimated 6.4 million people were eligible to vote Monday for the five seats, which have a total of 51 candidates in the fray.
The second phase of polling will be held April 12 in three of the state's total 14 constituencies - Silchar, Karimganj and Diphu (autonomous district).
The third phase will be held April 24 in the remaining six constituencies - Gauhati, Barpeta, Nowgong, Dhubri, Kokrajhar and Mangaldai.
Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi's son Gourav Gogoi, outgoing Congress MP Bijoy Krishna Handique, BJP state president Sarbananda Sonowal, and union ministers Ranee Narah and Paban Singh Ghatowar are among Monday's prominent aspirants.
Polling for Tirupati assembly by-election picks up
Hyderabad, Feb 13 (IANS) Polling in the by-election for Tirupati seat of Andhra Pradesh state a
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the country's first underwater metro in Kolkata toda
G20: 'Instead of who is coming to G20, the focus should be on issues', S jaishankar's big statement
The absence of Russian President Putin and later Chinese President Xi Jinping has been confirmed
Both countries are opportunities for each other, not a threat
China's stand seems to be softening amidst the escalating tension along the Line of Actual Contro
Tamil Nadu Law College Shut following Students Protests
Chennai, Feb 5 (IANS) The Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College here was Thursday closed for seve
Petrol Diesel Price: Oil companies have released the prices of petrol and diesel for today. Today
With the help of a brilliant partnership between Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma, Mumbai Indian
Gold and silver prices fell on Monday. According to the Bullion website, silver prices fell by â‚
New Delhi. Apart from the border, a new threat is now facing India. This is the danger of cyber-a
The voice sampling test of Aftab Poonawala, the main accused in the Shraddha murder case, will be
