New Delhi [India], April 23 : Tamil Nadu and West Bengal witnessed massive voter turnout in Assembly polls on Thursday recording 62.18 per cent and 56.81 per cent respectively at 1 pm, according to the Election Commission of India.
In Tamil Nadu, the highest turnout of 62.97 per cent was in Tiruppur district, followed by Namakkal at 62.51 per cent, then Erode at 61.97 per cent. Chennai district registered a turnout of 54.58 per cent, Coimbatore at 58.24 per cent and Madurai at 54.75 per cent. The lowest voter turnout was recorded in the Nilgiris at 50.42 per cent.
In West Bengal, Paschim Mednipur district recorded a high turnout of 65.77 per cent followed by Jhargam at 65.31 per cent and Bankura at 64.58. The lowest turnout was recorded in Malda at 58.45.22 per cent.
Polling for the 234 Assembly constituiences in Tamil Nadu and 152 constituencies in West Bengal began amid tight security this monring. The voting will conclude at 6:00 pm today. Polling in the remaining constituencies in WEst Bengal is slated for May 29 and counting of votes will take place on May 4.
Tamil Nadu Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Archana Patnaik said that the state's electorate comprises over 5.73 crore voters, featuring 2,93,04,905 female voters, 2,80,30,658 male voters, and 7,728 third-gender voters. The poll body is also catering to 14,59,039 first-time voters and 68,501 service voters, with 4,18,541 postal votes already received. Furthermore, 62 counting centres have already been established to ensure a smooth process after the high-stakes voting concludes.
The main contest is expected between the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance, which includes the Congress, DMDK and VCK, and the National Democratic Alliance led by AIADMK with BJP and PMK as allies.
In West Bengal, the parties are contesting against one another for 294 Assembly seats. As per the Election Commission of India (ECI), the first phase covers 152 Assembly constituencies, while the second phase includes 142 seats. There are a total of 1,478 candidates in the fray in this phase.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is aiming for a fourth consecutive term, while the BJP, which secured 77 seats in the previous election, is making a renewed push to form the government in the state.
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