Chechen voters started casting their ballots Sunday morning to elect a parliament as tens of thousands of police and security forces fanned out to ensure smooth balloting in the war-ravaged region.

A total of 600,000 voters have been registered in Chechnya for the polls, which will elect a 58-member parliament with two chambers -- the 18-seat Republican Council (upper house) and the 40-seat People's Assembly (lower house). The election has drawn 345 candidates from eight parties.

Polling stations opened at 0500 GMT amid heightened security in this volatile region, where separatist rebels have frequently targeted security forces as well as civilians in bombing attacks for much of the past decade, Russian news agencies reported.

The Interior Ministry deployed 24,000 police and troops to provide security on the election day, the Itar-Tass news agency said.

"Metal detectors have been set up at the entrance to each polling station to prevent weapons and explosives from being carried into the building," a ministry official told Itar-Tass on the eve of the election.

President Vladimir Putin has called the parliamentary election a "milestone" that will boost stability in the republic and the whole North Caucasus region.

About 20 observers from international groups including the Council of Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States visited polling stations to monitor the vote.

The polls will close at 1500 GMT and preliminary results are expected not earlier than Monday.

Soruce: Xinhua