Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Elections: First Phase Voting Underway

JAIPUR: Voting began at 7 am on Thursday for the first phase of the Panchayati Raj elections in Rajasthan. Sixteen zila parishads and 104 panchayat samitis are going to polls in the first phase. More than 85 lakh voters are eligible to elect the members of the zila parishads and panchayat samitis. The elections are being held in three phases for a total of 41 zila parishads and 457 panchayat samitis, besides elections for panches and sarpanches in 14,403 gram panchayats. A total of 6,976 candidates are in the fray for 2,081 seats in the first phase, comprising 293 zila parishad wards and 1,788 panchayat samiti wards. A total of 85,07,306 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the first phase of polling. The elections are being held in Ajmer, Alwar, Barmer, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Dungarpur, Jaipur, Jhalawar, Jodhpur, Kota, Nagaur, Pali, Phalodi, Rajsamand, Sirohi and Udaipur districts. For the 293 zila parishad seats, 1,693 candidates are contesting, while 5,283 candidates are in the fray for the 1,788 panchayat samiti seats.