Millions vote amid heatwave alert in Phase 6 of India’s staggered election
Al Jazeera
Many people lined polling stations before the start of voting at 7am to avoid blazing sun at peak of summer.
Millions of Indians have voted in the penultimate round of a gruelling national election, with a combined opposition trying to stop Prime Minister Narendra Modi from winning a rare third consecutive term.
Many people lined polling stations before the start of voting at 7am (01:30 GMT) on Saturday to avoid the blazing sun later in the day at the peak of summer.
The temperature soared to 43 degrees Celsius (109.4 degrees Fahrenheit) in the afternoon in capital New Delhi. India’s weather bureau this week issued a heatwave “red alert” for the city and surrounding states where tens of millions of people cast their ballots.
Lakshmi Bansal, a housewife, said while the weather was hot, people usually went out to shop and even attended festivals in such heat.
“This [election] is also like a festival, so I don’t have a problem voting in the heat,” Bansal said.
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