။ Andaman and Nicobar record 49.4% voter turnout

Port Blair, 16 April : The lone Lok Sabha seat in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands recorded a voter turnout of 49.4% amidst heavy rains on Thursday. Braving rains since the morning there was good turnout in the Andamans and Nancowrie Islands, election office sources said.
Today's election sealed the fate of 11 candidates in EVMS. Polling was sparse in the Tsunami-affected area of South Andaman, like Sippighat, Chouldari, Manpur, Farrergunj, where roughly a thousand tsunami-affected people are lodged.
In stark contrast large queues were seen outside booths in Port Blair city of the Nicobar Islands.
>
18 killed during first phase of polling for Indian LS
PTI, New Delhi, 16 April : An estimated 60% of the 14.30 crore voters exercised their franchise in the first phase of Indian Lok Sabha poll in 124 constituencies largescale violence by Naxals in four states killed 18 people, including five poll officials and 10 security personnel.

Simultaneous elections to assemblies in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa also drew about 60 voters' response with the polling today covering more than half of the constituencies in the two states. Heavily-armed Naxals went into action shortly after voting began this morning, blasting landmine targeting a bus ferrying Border Security Force personnel in Jharkhand's Latehar district in Jharkhand leaving seven personnel and two civilians dead.
Maoists blew up a vehicle carrying poll officials in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district, killing five of them and traded gunfire with security forces killing two CRPF jawans. Polling booths were set on fire and there was exchange of fire between naxals and security forces in Dantewada and Narainpur areas of the state that left two CRPF jawan dead and five others injured.
In Bihar's Gaya district, the Maoists shot dead two security personnel. "Considering the complexity and the challenges, the Election Commission is totally satisfied with today's polling, deputy election commissioner R Balakrishnan told reporters here while briefing mediapersons about the voter turnout.
Today's election will decide the fate of 1,715 candidates including RJD chief Lalu Prasad, BJP's Murli Manohar Joshi and Yashwant Sinha, TRS president K Chandrasekar Rao and union ministers Praful Patel, Renuka Chowdhury, Meira Kumar and S Jaipal Reddy.
Voting began on a sedate note in the 124 constituencies spread across 17 states and union territories and picked up during the day.

>

Polling begins in Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Port Blair, 16 April : Polling for the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands began this morning. There are 11 candidates, including a single woman in the fray. Six of the contestants are first timers. There would be 347 polling stations.
The largest polling station is at Pathrapur in the South Andaman with 1611 voters. The smallest polling station is on East Island where there are only 7 voters, all forest department employees. A high security alert has been sounded for the polls.