Meet 'Nila', the robot welcoming voters at Puducherry polling booth: WATCH

A robot named Nila welcomed voters at VOC Government School with flowers as citizens arrived to cast their votes during the Puducherry Elections 2026. A video posted by news agency ANI on X shows Nila in Indian traditional attire with flowers bucket standing inside the school premises.

Polling in the Union Territory began at 7 am, and till 9 am, Puducherry recorded a 17.43 per cent voter turnout. There are 294 candidates in the fray across 30 constituencies in the territory, casting their vote, which include 23 in Puducherry, five in Karaikal and one each in Mahe and Yanam.

Puducherry CEO expects more than 90 per cent polling

Meanwhile, Chief Electoral Officer P. Jawahar said on Wednesday that authorities expect voter turnout to exceed 90 per cent in the 2026 polls, compared to 82.2 per cent in 2021. He added that around 8 per cent of voters were removed from the rolls following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

The territory has about 9.5 lakh voters, including 5.03 lakh women, 4.46 lakh men, and 140 from the third gender. Voting will take place across 1,099 booths, including 30 all-women stations, 15 managed by youth, two run by persons with disabilities, and two set up in heritage buildings.

Jawahar also said authorities have seized items worth Rs 8.4 crore, including gold, liquor, cash, and freebies, meant to influence voters. Additionally, nine government employees were suspended for engaging in political activities, while disciplinary action has been initiated against nine others.

He asked citizens to follow the mantra, "Think, verify and act." Meanwhile, 113 misleading social media posts have been already removed by the cybersecurity wing resolving 76 out of 84 complaints within the 100-minute deadline via the C-Vigil app, he further said.