Noida, Ghaziabad voters exercise their franchise, heavy security at polling stations- In pics

The polling began at 7.00 a.m. sharp in the morning with some residents reaching their nearest polling booth as early as 6.30 a.m. The voter turnout till 1 pm stood at 30.53 per cent in Gautam Budh Naga and 33.5 in Ghaziabad. Around 10.00 a.m., every polling station was witnessing a rush of people as long queues began forming inside the premises of the voting area.

Female voters exercising their franchise in Yushufpur Greater Noida West. Despite the dense fog and cold wave conditions, voters have stepped out of their homes to cast their votes in the first phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections on Thursday. The enthusiasm to cast vote was the same in all age groups. 

(Photo by - Vikram Singh Somwanshi)

The security arrangements in the Gautam Budh Nagar district especially in and around the polling stations have been further tightened. The police personnel were deployed in heavy numbers at the polling stations. They were also guiding people to maintain social distancing owing to the fear of contracting novel coronavirus.

There are 566 polling stations and 1,840 polling booths in all the three Assembly constituencies of Gautam Budh Nagar -- Noida, Dadri and Jewar. In order to make the voting fair and uninterrupted, the duty of magistrates and police officers has been imposed by dividing the three assemblies into 8 superzones, 26 zones and 125 sectors.

On Thursday morning, the District Magistrate of Gautam Buddh Nagar, Suhas L Yathiraj urged the citizens to come out to vote. “I urge citizens to come out to vote today. Model polling booths established, & paramilitary forces deployed & videography being done at all polling booths. All COVID19 protocols being followed at polling booths,” said Suhas LY, DM, Gautam Budh Nagar.