Moderate voting reported in Pune Dist

Pune, Mar 11 (UNI) A moderate turnout of 30 per cent polling was registered from 13 talukas of the 75 Zilla Parishad (ZP) seats and 150 Panchayat Samitis (PS) in the district this afternoon, with Bhor taluka registering the highest number of voters followed by Purandhar, Haveli, Baramati and Vella.

Election Office sources said voting began at 0730 hrs and no untoward incident has been reported so far. Over 22,07,853 voters are expected to exercise their franchise. Around 295 candidates are in the fray for the 75 seats of the ZPs, while 557 candidates are contesting 150 PS seats in the district.

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is trying to regain lost ground in the ZP after it lost four of the seven Municipal Council seats in the December polls.

In a bid to maintain their dominance at the grassroots level, big leaders from almost all parties have fielded their family members.

Among such candidates are Sangram Thopte (son of former Congres MLA from Bhor), Anantrao Thopate, Vikrant Khutwad (son of former Shiv Sen MLA from Bhor), Kashinath Khutwad, Sunita Gawade (daughter-in-law of former NCP MLA from Shirur), Popatrao Gawade and Vaishali Patil (daughter-in-law of former NCP MLA from Indapur) and Ganpatrao Patil.

Polling will end at 1700hrs, election officer added.

UNI