The NDA may just make it past the majority mark, says a poll of opinion polls

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP will win 228 seats in the national election and, along with its allies in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), may just make it past the majority mark, says a poll of opinion polls published in March and April.

Opinion polls also predict that the Rahul Gandhi-led Congress will double its dismal 2014 tally to 88 seats but that is unlikely to help the party much in its mission to defeat the BJP.

The Congress, along with its allies, may win around 140 seats. Other parties and independents, predicted to win 129 seats, may become an important factor.

A party or alliance needs 272 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha to take power at the centre.

The national election beginning Thursday will be held in seven rounds of voting across the country. The results will be declared on May 23.

The Samajwadi Party-BSP combination is set to take away a big chunk - 36 seats - from the BJP's gigantic 2014 score of 71 in Uttar Pradesh. The Akhilesh Yadav-Mayawati alliance may contribute to a plunge in BJP's tally in UP to 40, opinion polls suggest.

In Bihar, the BJP, Janata Dal United and other NDA partners may hit the jackpot with 31 of the state's 40 seats. The RJD and the Congress will be limited to just nine seats, say opinion polls.

The polls suggest that down south, Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSR Congress and K Chandrasekhara Rao's Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) are set to be the big winners.

Jagan Reddy's party may sweep 21 of Andhra Pradesh's 25 seats, leaving only four for the state's ruling Telugu Desam Party of Chandrababu Naidu.

In neighbouring Telangana, the ruling TRS is likely to win 14 of the 17 Lok Sabha seats. The Congress could win two, say the polls.

The national election beginning Thursday will be held in seven rounds of voting across the country. The results will be declared on May 23.

Health warning: opinion polls often get it wrong