RNS: In the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections, voting is currently underway across 102 parliamentary constituencies in 21 states and union territories. The polling, which began on Friday, involves a total of 1,625 candidates contesting from 1.87 lakh polling stations.
Out of the 97 crore total voters, approximately 16.63 crore voters are eligible to cast their votes in this phase between 7 am and 5 pm in most polling booths.
The states where elections are taking place include Arunachal Pradesh (2 seats), Assam (5 seats), Bihar (4 seats), Chhattisgarh (1 seat), Madhya Pradesh (6 seats), Maharashtra (5 seats), Manipur (2 seats), Meghalaya (2 seats), Mizoram (1 seat), Nagaland (1 seat), Rajasthan (12 seats), Sikkim (1 seat), Tamil Nadu (39 seats), Tripura (1 seat), Uttar Pradesh (8 seats), Uttarakhand (5 seats), West Bengal (3 seats), Andaman and Nicobar (1 seat), Jammu and Kashmir (1 seat), Lakshadweep (1 seat), and Puducherry (1 seat).
Voting is also taking place in Naxal-infested Bastar, which recently witnessed the elimination of over 40 Maoists in major actions.
Additionally, assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Arunachal Pradesh (60 seats) and Sikkim (32 seats).