J-K gears up for phase 1 polls, seven districts to vote after a decade

Srinagar/Jammu, Sep 17: Seven districts of Jammu and Kashmir, located on either side of Pir Panjal mountain range, will vote for the first time in an assembly election in 10 years as the stage is set for phase 1 polling in the union territory on Wednesday.Over 23 lakh voters will decide the fate of 219 candidates, including 90 independents, who are running for 24 assembly segments — eight in three districts of Jammu region and 16 in four districts of Kashmir valley.This will be the first assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.According to the Election Commission (EC), a total of 23,27,580 electors are eligible to vote in phase 1, comprising 11,76,462 male, 11,51,058 female and 60 third-gender electors,”As many as 1.23 lakh youth between the age 18 to 19 years, along with 28,309 Person with Disabilities (PwDs) and 15,774 elderly voters above the age of 85 are also eligible to exercise their franchise in phase one,” an EC official said.