Voters queued up at many polling stations in Bihar hours before the start of the second phase of assembly election on Friday, though women are yet to come out in large numbers to cast their ballot.
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Polling began at 7 am in 32 of the 243 constituencies, including Maoist-affected areas, spread across six districts, officials said.
Most of the 8,849 polling booths are in rural areas, while 456 candidates are in the fray.
Five helicopters, drones and 993 companies of paramilitary forces have been deployed for this phase, said Additional Chief Electoral Officer R. Lakshmanan.
Around 5 percent of the 8.58 million voters eligible to cast their ballot had voted in the first hour, the official said.
The districts where polling is under way are: Gaya, the birthplace of Buddhism, Aurangabad, Jehanabad, Arwal, Kaimur and Rohtas, which saw some horrific caste massacres in the 1980s and 1990s.
Some of these areas are also known as Maoist hubs, and officials admit security will be a major concern. Details