Puducherry, April 9 Puducherry witnessed brisk polling on Thursday, with 37.06 per cent of the electorate casting their votes by 11 am.
As the NDA is striving to retain power, the opposition Congress-led alliance is aiming to wrest control from the AINRC-led front in the union territory, focusing its campaign on local autonomy and administrative friction.
From the moment voting began at 7 am, there was a steady increase in voter turnout.
Rural constituencies, in particular, were lively, with elderly citizens and women making their way to their respective polling stations to cast their votes.
In a modern twist, the election department deployed a robot in a polling station to welcome voters with flower petals and a message about the importance of voting.
AINRC chief and Chief Minister N Rangaswamy arrived at the polling station on his motorcycle to cast his vote.
Puducherry Home Minister A Namassivayam and Congress leader V Narayanasamy were among the early voters.
Notable voters included a Saivite monk who cast his ballot at a polling station in the Raj Bhavan Assembly constituency, and an octogenarian who walked to the polling station in the heart of the town.