Divya Delhi:The first phase of voting for the 18th Loksabha  elections began in 21 states and Union territories today. By 11 am, over 24.5% voter turnout was recorded from across the states. Seats in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jammu and Kashmir, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry go to polls today.More than 16.63 crore voters  which include over 8 crore men and women each, will cast their vote at nearly 2 lakh polling stations.Union minister  Nitin Gadkari, Bhupendra Yadav, Kiren Rijiju, Jitendra Singh, Arjun Ram Meghwal and Sarbananda Sonowal are in the fray in the first phase. Congress's Gaurav Gogoi, DMK's Kanimozhi and BJP's Tamil Nadu chief K Annamalai are also contesting the polls today.While the BJP-led NDA is seeking a strong majority, the opposition INDIA bloc are hoping for a rebound. In 2019, the UPA had won 45 of the 102 seats at stake on Friday and the NDA 41. Six of these seats have been redrawn as part of the delimitation exercise.The general elections to elect 543 members of the 18th Lok Sabha will be held in seven phases, from April 19 to June 1. The results will be announced on June 4.