Mar 10, Colombo: Sri Lankans in the liberated Eastern region are voting today to elect local government officials for the city of Batticaloa amid heavy security as thousands of police patrolled the streets.

The government has deployed nearly 6,500 security personnel into the area to provide security to the voters. Around 4,200 government officials are assigned for election duties to conduct the polling smoothly. The polling will take place from 7 am to 4 pm.

Sri Lanka government is holding the first municipal elections in 14 years to fill 101 seats in the nine divisions of Batticaloa. The government wrested the district from the Tiger control last year.

The government sees the elections as a first step to restore democracy in the region. However, the main opposition United National Party (UNP) and the LTTE proxy party Tamil National Alliance (TNA) boycotted entering the polls saying that there is no favorable environment to hold elections while armed groups are contesting.

Independent election monitoring group Peoples' Alliance for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) filed a fundamental rights petition calling for free and fair elections in the Batticaloa district after disarming armed groups.

There are 330,950 registered voters in the district and 831 candidates are vying for their vote. There are 285 polling booths and nine of them are for Internally Displaced People. There will be polling booths near the IDP camps and if needed the officials are ready to provide transport to the IDPs.