World’s biggest election kicks off as India votes

Friday is just the first phase of the election, with 102 seats going to the polls. Here are the other dates you need to look out for:

Results will be announced on 4 June.

When the world’s most populous country goes to polls, the numbers are bound to be huge. There are nearly 969 million eligible voters. To give you an idea of how large that number is, let’s add together the entire populations of some major countries:

Nearly 1.5 million polling booths with 5.5 million electronic voting machines have been set up to cover the length and breadth of the country. The Election Commission has deployed 15 million polling and security staff and trains and 400,000 vehicles will be used to ferry them.

Read more: A really, really big election

India’s parliament is made up of the Lok Sabha (lower house) and the Rajya Sabha (upper house). The election beginning today is to vote for MPs for the Lok Sabha.

All citizens living in India who are 18 years or older can register to vote (except for those who are barred on grounds of “unsoundness of mind” or criminality). A party or coalition needs to win 272 seats in the 543-member house to form the government.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) won 303 seats in the last election, is seeking a third consecutive term in power.

He’s being challenged by an opposition alliance - called the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance or INDIA - formed by more than two dozen parties, including the Congress which was the dominant party for the first 60 years of the country’s existence until the resurgence of the BJP in 2014.

Hello and welcome to the BBC’s live coverage of the first day of voting in India’s general election.

Millions of people will queue up across the country today to cast their votes to choose a new parliament.

But we won’t get to know the results today - this is just the first of seven phases of voting, with 102 out of 543 seats going to the polls. We have to wait until 4 June to find out which party or coalition has crossed the halfway mark - 272 seats - to form the next government.

India’s election process is long, unique and fascinating, and we have all the updates you need to understand what is happening - and a lot of colour from our reporters in the areas voting today.

Stay with us as we bring you all the news from the day.