Kathmandu, March 5 -- Voter turnout in Nepal's parliamentary elections reached around 18 percent by noon on Thursday, according to the Election Commission.

Election Commission spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai said 3,163,736 ballots had been cast across the country by 12pm.

Earlier, turnout stood at around 6 percent by 9:30am and rose to 10.18 percent by 11am as polling gained momentum.

Voting has continued largely smoothly nationwide, with only minor incidents reported. Election Commissioner Sagun Shumsher Rana said polling was progressing normally across most districts.

Nepal Police also said the overall situation remained peaceful. Police spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle said minor disagreements occurred at a few polling centres,...