J-K panchayat polls: Jammu records highest voter turnout till 10 am

Jammu district on Saturday recorded the highest voter turnout of 29.8 per cent while Samba was second in the list with 29.7 per cent till 10 am in the eighth phase of the panchayat elections.

Despite the frosty cold weather, terror threats and boycott call by the two major political outfits of the region -- the National Conference and the Peoples Democratic Party -- voters came out in large numbers to exercise their franchise.

The voter turnout recorded in other areas of the state are as follows: Rajouri 29 per cent, Kathua 27.4 per cent, Reasi 18.4 per cent, Baramulla 14.8 per cent, Kupwara 9.3 per cent. However, the voting percentage was abysmally low in Srinagar (4.8 per cent), Bandipora (3.5 per cent) and Budgam (2.6 per cent).

As many as 43 Sarpanchs and 681 Panchs have been elected unopposed in today's polling. Elections for the rest 331 Sarpanch and 2007 Panch seats are taking place with 6304 candidates in the fray. For smooth voting, the state election commission has set up 2083 polling stations in Jammu division and 550 in Kashmir Valley.

The ninth and final phase of panchayat elections is scheduled to take place on December 11.