First phase of the Bihar Assembly polls ends

With tight security, an estimated 54.31 percent of the 1.07 crore voters on Thursday exercised their franchise in the first phase of the Bihar Assembly polls in 47 of the 243 seats.DIG and Commissioner of Purnia division along with Special Task Force commandos carried out aerial patrol in two helicopters during polling.

While 85 percent of booths were manned by central paramilitary forces and armed police from other states, the rest were guarded by the Bihar Military Police.

The state's borders with Nepal and West Bengal were sealed.