Newskarnataka – Exculsive
By Sheeja Moodubelle
After slogging for over a month, candidates who contested the Lok Sabha elections can now afford to take a break from hectic campaigning. However with counting of polls a month away, it will be an agonising wait for the candidates and they are bound to maintain rapport with the party workers at least till the declaration of results.Campaigning under the blazing sun and sleepless nights has been difficult but this is the only time when one can see the leader closely.
Though the election process has ended, public still have unanswered questions. Are the leaders aware of the real issues affecting the public? Will they stand for the needs? Has the public chosen the right candidate?
Ananth D’Sa who works at LIC says the basic needs of the people here in the Udupi-Chikmagalur constituency is ‘drinking water’, which most of the people in the city get only for alternative days. He demanded a permanent solution for water problems.
Saritha Shenoy from health care department says safety of womanhood is an important issue of Udupi.There are many cases of atrocities against women here which should be addressed to. She added that Udupi used to be a peaceful and safe area for women but now it is not the case.
Marina, Steevan, Arun, Anitha and Sarika college students who cast their vote for the first time opined that they expect a leader who will at least be less corrupt because corruption-free, transparent and fast moving government can be found only in the manifesto or in the speech. “Just as we are responsible to vote, we expect our leaders to rule responsibly,”they said.
Muneer, an auto driver opined that better roads and jobs for the youth is also not ignorable issue. We need job opening in our native places because people like us cannot go to metro cities like Bangalore or Hyderabad to work, he adds.
Padmanabha Bhatt, a teacher by profession said food health and better education for the new generation should be the motto of the leaders. Udupi is known for education but there are kids on the road who don’t get education. Government is giving enough schemes to attract them but most of such kids are from migrant families. There should be plans to provide 100% education to kids, he says.
The election promises from few candidates :-
Jayaprakash Hegde (Congress):-
Congress candidate from Udupi-Chikmagalur constituency has campaigned with the agenda mainly on development undertaken during his tenure of one year and ten months.
Shobha Karandlaje(BJP):-
The Bharatiya Janata Party candidate for Udupi-Chikmagalur parliamentary constituency, campaigned concentrating on women’s issues and development factors.
Dhananjay Kumar from (JD-S):-
Janata Dal (Secular) candidate promises to fight for the cause of farmers and the poor. If the party comes to power it will address burning problems faced by areca and coffee growers, he says.
Gurudev S H (AAP):-
He has taken up the issues which are ignored by the major parties, concerning the Western Ghats, being the most fragile ecosystem in the world which is subject to constant threats like monoculture plantations, Mining, new Hydel power projects and unscientific development practices.
S Vijaykumar (CPI):-
The CPI candidate have promised to have a corruption-free government.
Who will eventually make it from Udupi-Chikmagalur constituency?