Voting under way in Odisha for LS, assembly polls (Lead)

Posted on 10th Apr 2014 03:34 pm by admin

Bhubaneswar, April 10 (IANS) Polling began on a peaceful note for 10 Lok Sabha and 70 assembly seats in Odisha, an official said.

People stood in queues outside polling centres before polling started at 7 am.

"Everywhere balloting has started. We talked to all the district collectors and police officials and from nowhere have we got any complaints so far. It has started on a peaceful note," state's Chief Electoral Officer Mona Sharma told IANS.

Over 13 million electors will cast their ballots in the first phase of polling.

There are a total of 28,880,850 voters in the state. Polling for the remaining 11 Lok Sabha seats and 77 assembly seats would be held in the second phase April 17.

Security was tight, and paramilitary personnel and police have been deployed in vulnerable areas to ensure trouble-free polling.

Defying boycott call given by Maoists, people came to exercise their franchise in the southern districts of Koraput, Malkangiri, Rayagada, Kalahandi and Kandhamal.

Prominent candidates in the first phase are Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, and two former chief ministers and senior Congress leaders, Giridhar Gomang and Hemananda Biswal.

State Revenue Minister Surya Narayan Patro, former union minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jual Oram, state BJP president K.V. Singh Deo, and Congress leader Narasingh Mishra are also in the fray.

Odisha saw intense campaigning by political heavyweights, including Congress president Sonia Gandhi, vice president Rahul Gandhi, BJP chief Rajnath Singh and prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

Other news

Punjab sets up Bureau of Investigation

Chandigarh, March 4 (IANS) The Punjab government on Wednesday claimed that the state had become

Heart Attack: Breathing broke out in the blink of an eye: People's lives snatched away in a moment while watching dance...

In the recent past, many people have lost their lives due to heart attacks. Some of these cases w

IND Vs ENG: India's playing 11 in the second test can be like this, two changes are going to happen

IND Vs ENG 2nd Test Matching 11: The second Test match is to be played between India and England

Navy tests BrahMos from a ship: The missile hit the target accurately in the Arabian Sea; Sukhoi was tested 2 months ago

Indian Navy has successfully tested BrahMos from its ship in the Arabian Sea. BrahMos missile wit

Indian legend Kris Srikkanth predicted SRH, saying - according to now, the team will be number nine in the points table

The start of the 15th season of IPL has not been good for Sunrisers Hyderabad, who performed poor

Covid-19: No longer worried about new variants of Corona, new vaccines will make it ineffective, and strong immunity will develop

Corona has been causing serious health risks globally for more than three years, with new variant

These characteristics of the Sputnik V vaccine make it very effective, know everything about the new vaccine

In India, the Russian-developed Corona Vaccine Sputnik V has been approved for emergency use. Thi

Petrol-diesel will be cheaper: Finance Ministry will reduce excise duty, Center is also being talked to reduce VAT; Prices may decrease until 15 March

Petrol and diesel will soon be cheap. It is reported that the Finance Ministry is planning to red

Shakib vs Mathews: Shakib said - this is a war, I will do anything to win, Mathews said - have never seen anyone stooping so low

There was a lot of chaos due to the decision to time out in the match between Bangladesh and Sri

Justin Trudeau Resign: 'Trudeau's resignation will improve India-Canada relations', Congress said - his tenure was full of foolish policies

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced his resignation from his post. Not only in C