Amid shutdown, 9 per cent voting recorded till 10 am in Kashmir

In 10 blocks of Ladakh region having 130 polling locations, the officials said 1,001 votes were polled in the first two hours.

Voters in Uri queue to vote in the first phase of panchayat polls in Jammu & Kashmir.(Photo| ANI) 

SRINAGAR: Moderate polling was witnessed in the early hours of the first phase of panchayat election in Kashmir Valley on Saturday as nearly nine per cent of voters exercised their franchise till 10 AM.

"A total of 8.9 per cent of the electorate cast their votes at 283 polling locations across the valley till 10 AM," an official said.

READ| Separatist shutdown in Kashmir Valley against panchayat polls

They said 12,104 votes were polled in the first two hours of the poll conducted in 16 blocks in six districts of the valley. The officials said the total number of electorate in these polling stations is 1,35,774.

In 10 blocks of Ladakh region having 130 polling locations, the officials said 1,001 votes were polled in the first two hours. The total electorate in these polling stations is 25,906 and the voting percentage till 10 AM is 3.9 per cent.

The total voting percentage in Kashmir division, including Ladakh region, at 10 AM is 8. 1 per cent, the officials said.

Voting began at 8 AM at 3,296 polling stations -- 1,303 in Kashmir and 1,993 in Jammu -- and would end at 2 PM, officials said.