国际英语新闻：India voters turn out heavily despite rebel violence

NEW DELHI, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Despite violence from extreme left-wing rebels on the first day of Indian elections Thursday, Indian voters turned out heavily at the polling stations in the first phase of the general elections.

    Primary estimates said the turnout rate in the polling on the first day of the marathon polling is above 50 percent.

An Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) is pictured as polling officials wait for voters inside a polling station in Gajandi village, about 120 km (74 miles) north of the eastern Indian city of Ranchi, April 16, 2009.

 "Voting took place amid huge presence of paramilitary forces," said Jayasudha, a Hyderabad resident in south-central Indian state Andhra Pradesh, who cast her vote Thursday.

    "Early morning, you could see paramilitary forces escort election officials to polling booths with all equipment necessary. Never before have I seen such heavy force deployment for polls," she told Xinhua on the phone.

    At a different polling booth, another Hyderabad resident, Papayamma J. Rao said many people braved extreme heat to cast their vote.

Voters line up to cast their votes as security personnel stand guard at a polling booth in Madangundi village, about 150 km (93 miles) north of the eastern Indian city of Ranchi April 16, 2009.

 "It was overwhelming to see enthusiasm among people who were out to vote, braving long queues and heat," she said.

    Some media reports estimated a 60 percent voter turnout in Andhra Pradesh, the second most populous state of India after Tamil Nadu.

    Speaking from west Indian state Maharashtra, a local resident Bharat Hande cited an isolated case of minor violence in Bhandara constituency of Nagpur area.

Villagers queue up to cast their votes outside a polling station at Moharipur village in the northern Indian city of Gorakhpur April 16, 2009

"After some minor hiccups, voting continued without any major obstacle in Nagpur," he said.

    "Men carried their aged parents on their backs, and voter-turnout was reasonably good," another voter, Ram Dev, of central Indian state Uttar Pradesh said in northern India.

    In the restive northeast state of Assam, voting went on without problem and turnout rate stood at around 65 percent, said officials.

    New Delhi student Zo Khiangte, who spoke to her mother in Karbi, Assam, told Xinhua that people queued up to vote in Assam, while security forces kept vigil at booths, she said.

    In the northeast Mizoram, Nagaland and Meghalaya states, turnout rate also reached from 60 to 70 percent, while the Manipurstate bordering Myanmar had a 40 to 50 percent turnout rate, according to primary estimates by official.

    Meanwhile, in violence-shaken Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar, about 50 percent of the voters turned to cast their franchise despite relentless attacks by the Naxal insurgency rebels who killed at least 18 people during the day, including seven paramilitary troopers and one policemen.