Saturday, April 22 2006 10:28 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Thiruvananthapuram: The first phase of polling in 59 assembly segments in Kerala began this morning.

A total of 409 candidates are in the fray in the first phase of polling, spread around six southern districts Thiruvananthapura, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki.

The major contestants in the fray for the first phase of polling include Chief Minister Oommen Chandy (Puthupally), nine of his cabinet colleagues, CPI-M leaders M A Baby (Kundrara), P K Gurudasan (Kollam), RSP leader and Rajya Sabha member N K Premachandran (Chavara).

In all, 8,292 polling booths have been arranged for voting and 22,000 police personnel deployed for the smooth conduct of the polls.

The phase covers a total of 83.89 lakh voters, of whom 43.20 lakh are women.

The second phase of polling will be held on April 29 and the third phase on May 3.