Over 45 per cent polling recorded in West Bengal till 11 AM

KOLKATA: Over 45 per cent voters cast their franchise in six Parliamentary constituencies of West Bengal till 11 AM in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls in the state today.

"Over 45 per cent polling was recorded on an average in the first four hours of polling in six Parliamentary constituencies of Jhargram, Midnapore, Purulia, Bankura, Bishnupur and Asansol," state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sunil Gupta said.

The polling percentage was very good in the first four hours and a large number voters were waiting in queues in most polling stations, he said.

Polling was peaceful and incident-free, the CEO said. Some EVMs had to be replaced after mock polling. Bye-election to Kotulpur(SC) Assembly seat in Bankura district is also being held.

Altogether 72 candidates, including 11 women, are in the fray.

In a major move, the Election Commission has stepped up security arrangement for the Jangalmahal area during the polls today with the deployment of adequate central forces in and around all polling stations affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE).

Arrangements were also made for webcasting and live monitoring of sensitive areas amid tight security provided by central forces which were more than double from the 2011 Assembly election.