Shimla: Over 78 per cent polling was recorded in the first phase of the Himachal Pradesh panchayat elections on Tuesday as women voters polled six per cent more than men, officials said.

Voting for 1,293 panchayats began at 7 am and concluded peacefully at 3 pm, amid a 'yellow' alert for heatwave conditions in Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Kangra, Solan and Sirmaur districts.

According to the State Election Commission data, 78.55 per cent voters exercised their franchise till 3 pm. Women voters outnumbered men in 10 out of 12 districts.

The data showed that 81.76 per cent of women voters turned up at polling booths, as against 75.43 per cent of men.

The highest turnout was recorded in Kullu district at 84.43 per cent, followed by 82.57 per cent in Sirmaur, 81.06 per cent in Solan, 80.53 per cent in Chamba Shimla recorded 79.80 per cent voter turnout, Mandi 79.39 per cent, Una 78.76 per cent, Bilaspur 77.39 per cent, Kangra 75.75 per cent, Hamirpur 73.05 percent and Kinnaur 73.59 per cent.

Lahaul and Spiti district recorded the lowest turnout at 69.40 per cent, according to the official data.

About 97 per cent voter turnout, the highest in the state was recorded at Kunar-dhoman gram panchayat in Sirmaur district In Maindi, a ward of Karsog in Mandi district, the voting for a panchayat samiti was cancelled as the name of one of the candidates was missing from the ballot paper.

There are about 2,500 voters in the ward and the name of one candidate, Hoshiyar Singh was not in the list. An enquiry has been ordered, officials said.

The elections were also postponed in ward number 3 of Chambi panchayat in Chamba as one of the candidate contesting elections died. The polls were also cancelled/postponed in ward number 1 of Brandhli in Naren gram panchayat in Rampur in Shimla district as stamp of NOTA was used in the ballot paper.

"The polling was peaceful across the state. The voting for a panchayat samiti would be held again in one ward in Mandi district as the name of one of the six candidates was missing from the list," State Chief Election Commissioner Anil Khachi told PTI.

In Bilaspur district, 113-year-old Manglu Devi exercised her right to vote at the 'Pink Booth' established within the Seu Gram Panchayat, located in the Ghumarwin development block.

A resident of Bhadrog village, Manglu Devi had arrived at the polling station accompanied by other family members to cast her ballot. She is one of the oldest women to have cast her vote in these elections.

District Election Officer (Panchayat) and Deputy Commissioner Bilaspur, Rahul Kumar, lauded Manglu Devi's spirit, remarking that her participation in this "festival of democracy" would inspire other voters and serve as a source of inspiration for the youth.

Women's empowerment was at display at Ghanghal Panchayat in Dhanotu Development Block of Mandi district as the responsibility for conducting the elections was entrusted to female officials and staff, not merely at a single 'women-only polling booth', but across the entire panchayat.

Women exclusively manned the electoral front at all five polling stations within the panchayat, ensuring that the voting process proceeded in a peaceful and orderly manner throughout the day, Sub-divisional Magistrate Smritika Negi said.

The objective behind this initiative is to bring women to the forefront of leadership and administrative responsibilities, she added.

Negi said that after the success achieved in Ghanghal Panchayat, this same all-women team will now assume responsibility for all five polling stations in Chowk Panchayat during the next phase of voting, scheduled for May 28.

More than 16.5 lakh voters were eligible to exercise their franchise in the first phase. Over 9,000 candidates are in the fray for positions of gram panchayat members, pradhans, up-pradhans, panchayat samiti members and zila parishad members.

The elections are being held using colour-coded ballot papers -- white for ward members, yellow for up-pradhans, green for pradhans, pink for panchayat samiti members and blue for zila parishad members.

The State Election Commission said the counting for gram panchayat members, pradhans and up-pradhans have started and results would be declared today, while those for panchayat samiti and zila parishad seats would be announced on May 31.

Around 50.89 lakh voters are eligible to vote in the three-phase polls.

They will elect 31,182 public representatives -- 3,754 pradhans, 3,754 up-pradhans, 21,654 ward members, 1,769 panchayat samiti members and 251 zila parishad members.

A total of 10,854 candidates have already been elected unopposed. Polling for the second and third phases will be held on May 28 and 30, respectively. 

(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)