Berhampur: With the government starting preparations for the coming panchayat election, the political atmosphere in the villages of Ganjam district is getting charged up.
The three major political parties in the state – BJD, BJP and Congress – have started chalking out their strategies to garner votes. While the ruling party has already started propagating the achievements of the Naveen Patnaik-led government, the Opposition is literally on the job of digging up dirt on the government.
With the aim of not losing women’s votes, the BJD is said to have reserved 50 per cent of the entire seats in the Panchayat raj institutions for women. Similarly, in a bid to please SHGs, facilities are in place to provide crores of rupees to SHGs through Mission Shakti. While the Opposition parties are alleging that these are being done so strategically to get political mileage, the ruling party is leaving no space to counter them.
From the present situation, it is quite evident that in the coming the days, the political atmosphere in the rural areas will be reverberating with allegations and counter allegations.
If the present situation is taken into consideration, the BJD seems to be lagging behind in the process in Ganjam district. The party is yet to declare the 22 block committees and workers. According to the BJD district president, the list of organisational committees of blocks under 10 Assembly constituencies have already been prepared and sent to the state party office for approval. In the next phase, the lists of more three constituencies will be prepared.
However, the delay has displeased many party workers. “Believing that Naveen charisma will see them through in the panchayat elections, the formation of block committee has been delayed despite the fact that the election is just round the corner. It will definitely have a negative impact on the party’s performance,” maintained some BJD leaders, requesting anonymity.
Similarly, though the BJD has always been giving importance to women, the party’s district women’s committee has not been formed as yet. While only the district women committee’s leader has been appointed, the names of other workers are yet to be announced. At the same time, block and urban committees have also not been formed, resulting in displeasure among the women workers who are aspiring to get positions.
PNN