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Voters reached the polling booths in Uttar Pradesh's Aligarh city to cast their votes amid foggy and cold weather on Thursday morning.
Voting for the first phase of the Uttar Pradesh elections on 58 Assembly seats, covering 11 districts of the state, began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm today. People at Aligarh's Subhash Inter College expressed enthusiasm about choosing their government for the next five years. Speaking to ANI, a voter said, "We have reached here at 6.30 am despite foggy weather. I urge people to cast their votes first then do any other thing in the day." "We want a good government, so I would request every eligible voter to cast their vote. We have come here to vote despite the cold weather," another voter said. Another voter said, "I was very excited to vote this time because I am a 'first-time voter'. My father also encouraged me to participate in polling. I appeal to the UP government for the development of the state." The first phase of voting will cover the 'Jat-dominant belt' of the western parts of the state. The districts going to the polls on Thursday are Mathura, Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahar, Hapur, Shamli, Baghpat, Aligarh, Agra, and Gautam Buddha Nagar. As many as 623 candidates are in the fray in the first phase of the assembly polls while nearly 2.27 crore voters will decide their fate. Nearly 50,000 paramilitary personnel from 412 companies of central paramilitary forces have been deployed at different locations to maintain law and order as the election campaign for the first phase of Assembly polls in western Uttar Pradesh ended on Tuesday evening. The police have sealed the borders of the State and strict vigilance is underway to maintain peace in 58 Assembly constituencies. The 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly is scheduled to go to the polls in seven phases on February 10, 14, 20, 23, 27, March 3, and 7. The counting of votes will take place on March 10. (ANI)
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