Voting begins for third phase LS polls in Odisha

The third phase elections for the six Lok Sabha and 42 Assembly constituencies in Odisha commenced on Tuesday.

Voting began at 7 a.m. and it will continue till 6 p.m.. In the Maoists affected areas, polling will end at 4 p.m., said an election officer.

As many as 92,56,322 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise for the Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri, Sambalpur, Keonjhar and Dhenkanal, Koraput Lok Sabha seats and 42 Assembly constituencies under them.

Out of the total voters, there are 47,99,030 male, 44,56,629 female and 1,163 belonging to the third gender category.

They will decide the fate of total 417 candidates -- 61 Lok Sabha and 356 Assembly -- in 10,464 booths.

The Election Commission has identified 3,186 critical polling booths while CCTVs have been installed in 779 booths and Central Armed Police Forces have been deployed in 596 polling stations.

As many as 20,778 volunteers and 6,190 vehicles have been engaged to assist 1,58,495 differently-abled voters.

Following technical glitches in Electronic Voting Machines in the second phase, re-polling has been recommended in nine polling stations located in Bonai (ST), Sundargarh (ST), Daspalla (SC), Attabira, Bargarh, Padampur, Surada and Brajarajnagar Assembly constituencies.

Elections are being held in four phases in Odisha.

--IANS

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