India's cabinet has accepted a recommendation to hold simultaneous elections to state assemblies and the national parliament, the information minister said on Wednesday, a move pushed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to improve governance.

The Narendra Modi government has approved the report from a high-level panel led by former President Ram Nath Kovind on the concept of 'One Nation, One Election' (ONOE).

NEW DELHI -- Northern India's Jammu and Kashmir region kicked off its first legislative assembly polls in about a decade on Wednesday, with restoration of the region's special status being one of the major issues. Voting will continue in October and results are due on Oct. 8.

The Aam Aadmi Party opposes the Union cabinet's 'One Nation One Election' proposal, advocating instead for monthly elections to ensure accountability. They also call for uniform education and healthcare nationwide.

The Union Cabinet agreed on Wednesday, September 18, to the recommendations of the high-level committee led by former President Ram Nath Kovind, fulfilling the BJP's long-standing 'One Nation, One Election' manifesto pledge.

The issue of One Nation One Election has been on the Bharatiya Janata Party's election manifestoes as part of electoral reforms.

As the Union Cabinet on Wednesday accepted a high-level panel's recommendations for holding simultaneous polls for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies and local bodies in a phased manner after a countrywide consensus-building exercise,

Opposing the government's 'One Nation, One Election' proposal, the opposition parties attacked the "impractical and unrealistic" proposal of the Union government and said that it is not in the "favour" of the country.