46 percent of Himachal voters aged less than 40

Of over 47 lakh voters in Himachal Pradesh, 46 percent are less than 40 years of age, an official said Wednesday.

"The number of voters of 18-19 years of age (first time voters) is 62,133 and around 46 percent of the total voters are less than the age of 40," state Chief Electoral Officer Narender Chauhan told reporters here.

The percentage of electors to the total population (68 lakh) is 65.51 percent, the highest in the country. There are 22.98 lakh women voters.

Chauhan said more than 36,000 employees would be on election duty for the Lok Sabha polls slated for May 7.

Of the four parliamentary seats in Himachal Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party won Shimla (reserved), Kangra and Hamirpur, while the Congress bagged Mandi in the 2009 elections.