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.
Delhi Capitals will consider the match against Punjab Kings as a knockout match, the bowler claimed
Delhi Capitals (DC) spinner Kuldeep Yadav has said that his team is treating their upcoming match
After the defeat in the final of the World Test Championship 2021-23, there is a lot of talk abou
The firing took place at the Freedom Day Parade in Chicago on America's Independence Day. 7 peopl
Bharat Biotech claimed on Thursday that its anti-coronavirus vaccine Covaxin is sa
Ghibli Trend: OpenAI changed the rules for Ghibli-style photos, now real-world images cannot be used
These days, Ghibli-style pictures are being seen in abundance on social media. It can be said tha
Astronaut and Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla shared his experience in Delhi on Thursday after a
Film actor Salman Khan has once again been threatened by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. Last night, S
The first day-night match of the 3 ODI series between India and England is being played at the Ma
Disha Patani was not giving Salman Khan a dance, Salman had such a reaction
The title track of Salman Khan's upcoming film Radhe Most Wanted Bhai has been released a few day
This year is going to be the best in the last five years for the salaried person in terms of sala
