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JAMMU — Voting started in the Jammu-Reasi Lok Sabha constituency on Friday with enthusiastic voters reaching the booths in their traditional Dogra dresses to exercise the franchise.
Voters in the cities and urban areas came out in twos and fours while those in the border areas came out in large numbers to cast their vote.
Better roads, development, education, connectivity, healthcare, etc., are the main issues of the urban voters.
The large numbers of border voters pouring out to use their democratic rights proved beyond doubt that peace on the border and the country’s capacity to protect their lives, agricultural fields, homes and livestock are the main considerations for border area voters.
There are 17,80,738 voters in the constituency, including 9,21,053 males, 8,59,657 females and 28 third-gender voters.
ECI has set up 2,416 polling stations including 666 urban and 1,750 rural polling stations.
CCTV camera monitoring, webcasting and deployment of poll mobile senior supervisory staff are some of the measures to ensure free and fair polling in the constituency.
About 13 polling stations, which come in the communication shadow zone, are being monitored through satellite phone, wireless and human runners to ensure fairness of the voting process.
Adequate security has been provided throughout the constituency while the polling stations were sanitised security-wise a day ahead of the polling date.
Hundreds of police personnel and those of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) have been deployed to provide a safe and secure voting environment to the voters.
There are 22 contestants in the field, but the main electoral battle is between Jugal Kishore Sharma of the BJP and Raman Bhalla of the Congress.
Sharma is seeking re-election for the third time from this constituency while Bhalla, a former J&K minister, is supported by the National Conference which did not field any candidate in the constituency.
The constituency comprises the districts of Jammu and Reasi and one voting segment, Sunderbani-Kalakote of Rajouri district.
Polling starts at 7 a.m. and will end at 6 p.m.