BENGALURU: The rising temperatures seems a slight deterrent for people voting in 14 Parliamentary Constituencies of Karnataka in Phase-3 elections.
As of 1.30 pm, the voter turnout stood at 41.59%.
Voting at various poll stations in Karnataka had started at 7 am and till 11 am the turnout was 24. 48% till. It was 9.45% till 9 am. As per data from the office of the chief Electoral Officer Karnataka, the highest voter turnout was in Chikkodi -45.69%, followed by Shimoga--44.98%.
The election officials said all measures have been taken for the safety of voters to beat the summer heat. Sufficient shade, water, medicines and juices or other liquids have been arranged for hydration. Each polling booth is equipped with ambulances and health centres in case of emergency.
A total number of 2,59,52,958 voters are eligible to vote in the Phase-3 elections that will decide the fate of 227 candidates. Officials in the office of Chief Electoral Officer Karnataka (CEO) have taken all measures to ensure that people come in large numbers to vote before the temperatures start to rise.
The election officials have also taken inputs from India Meteorological Department (IMD) on the rising temperatures as the IMD had issued a heat wave alert for most parts of North Karnataka for May 7, the polling day.
The constituencies going to polls in Phase-3 elections are- Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bellary, Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bidar, Koppal, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davangere and Shimoga.
The largest number of voters in Phase-3 elections are in Gulbarga parliamentary constituency- 20,98,202 and the lowest in Uttara Kannada- 16,41,156.
The second largest number of voters are in Raichur- 20,10,103. There are 6,90,929 young voters, 2,29,263 voters are aged above 85 years of age and 3,43,966 voters are listed as People with Disabilities (PwD). Of the 227 candidates contesting- 206 are males and 21 are females. Nine candidates are from Bahujan Samaj Party and 14 from BJP and Congress each. 117 independent candidates are also contesting in Phase-3 elections. The highest number of candidates (30) are from Davangere constituency, followed by Shimoga (23) and Bagalkot (22). Eight candidates, each, are contesting from Bijapur and Raichur.