Kendrapara: The recently concluded three-tier panchayat elections has once again brought to the fore the sorry state of development in this district, a report said.
Over 52 temporary booths were established to help people vote in the elections as many of the villages in the district lack any communication facilities and one has to toil a lot to reach these villages.
Bridges are constructed on the rivers to connect one place to another but construction of roads in 8138 villages under poverty alleviation scheme Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNEGS) are yet to get completed.
The migrants who have migrated to other states and countries have not turned up this time to vote in the election. This is indicative that they more concerned for their livelihood than voting in the elections. The Aul, Pattamundai, Rajkanika, Rajnagar and Mahakalapra blocks are known for rampant migrations.
However, what is heartening is that the number of women voters has gone up this time in comparison to their male counterparts. The district has 11, 48,046 voters out of which 70.95 per cent men and 78.69 per cent women have voted in the election.
Over 3 to 4 per cent more women have voted in the elections in Kendrapara, Derabish, Marshaghai and Garadpur blocks. Even 7 to 16 per cent more women have voted in the elections than their male counterparts in migration hit blocks like Aul, Pattamundai, Rajkanika, Rajnagar and Mahakalapara blocks. In this context, improving the social and economic conditions of people will pose a serious challenge to the newly elected public representatives, political observers said.
Social activist Banambar Sahu said that the economic condition of the district is quite weak and the district administration has no plan to make proper utilization of the human resources. The male voters here prefer to migrate to other states for employment due to lack of livelihood opportunities, he said. The women empowerment schemes of the government have paved the way in an increase in number of women voters.
The fund allocated to women self-help groups is responsible in an increase in number of women voters in the elections than their political consciousness, he added.
Political observer Bhuban Mohan Jena said that the problem of migration has been reflected in five blocks of the district in this election. He attributed the absence of migrants in the election due to Covid pandemic.
The eight per cent increase in women vote has compensated the loss of absence of migrants during the polls. However, the time has come for the public representatives to become conscious while the economy of the district will become an issue in the next election, he added.
Utkal Keshari Parida, district president, BJD said that the state government has fulfilled the dreams of late Chief minister Biju Patnaik. Empowerment of women has turned into a movement in the state as the women have become an example to emulate by participating more in numbers in the election.
Kishore Kumar Panda, district president, BJP said that the participation of women has strengthened the democracy which has become possible only due to the policies of Union government and a public movement. He claimed that the vote of women have gone more towards the BJP and its supported candidates.
Senior Congress leader and former Aul MLA Debendra Sharma said that the Covid infection has cast its shadow on the election. The BJD had tried to lure the women into its fold while Congress will reap better results in the panchayat polls than the previous elections.