On November 10, the residents of this ghetto, situated on the foothills of a mine and housing families either employed in mines around Dalli Rajhara or menial jobs like collection and sale of firewood, questioned Mukti Guha Niyogi, chairperson of Dalli Rajhara municipal corporation, on her long absence from the locality. Manprabha Sahu, a housewife, pounced on Mukti, youngest daughter of legendary labour leader late Shankar Guha Niyogi, the moment she asked her to vote for the Congress. 

Mukti accompanied Congress candidate from Dondilohara assembly constituency Anila Bhedia on the campaign trail. 

“Tor panch saal baad dekhe hain. Ab tak kahan thei (You have been seen after five years. Where were you all this while?),” Sahu rattled off angrily to Mukti, who did not know where to hide. Mukti was elected chairperson of the 27-member municipality in 2009 after the Congress secured a majority in the house. 

She is scheduled to face a re-election next year. 

Comprising of Dam Side, Pump House, Ram Rama Dafai, Bajrang Chowk, Kelabadi labour camp lacks even the most basic amenities – potable drinking water and sewerage. A part of the camp does not have electricity and while half the camp has access to piped water supply and open drains, the other half sustains on water from wells and a nallah and stores sewerage in pits within their houses. 

Only a handful of residents have access to toilets; others relieve themselves in the wild grass that surrounds the camp and is home to poisonous reptiles. Worse, 165 families of the camp were made homeless in January this year when Indian Railways demolished their houses to make way for a track to Rowghat. 

They are yet to be compensated. The Rowghat project will allow Bhilai Steel Plant to get iron ore from new mines. 

To make matters even worse, several hundred mine employees have been laid off in recent years for different reasons. The mines have started using heavy machines and engaged private contractors, and as a result they do not need as many hands. Besides, mining resources in and around Dalli Rajhara have almost reached a saturation point.   

Congress councillor faces wrath

On November 11, Narmada Sahare, the Congress municipal councillor from ward 12, turned up with her corporation vice-president Ravi Jaiswal and block Congress president Shiromani Mathur to seek votes from Kelabadi residents. And there is every likelihood that she must be regretting her decision. A motorcycle-borne youth ticked off Sahare for having neglected the ward. He charged her with not providing drinking water, sewerage or streetlights to the ward. 

Sahare fervently requested many local women to counter the youth. But none of them did her bidding. One woman instead chorused with the youth. When Sahare tried to change the subject and said her party has promised 35 kg rice under BPL quota for free, the crowd asked whether she could give them tomatoes, onions or other essential vegetables. 

“The tomatoes are selling at Rs 40 per kg and onion costs Rs 70 per kg. Who is responsible for inflation?” one onlooker asked. 

Sahare tried to blame inflation on the Raman Singh government but none of the locals were prepared to accept it. “The central government is responsible for price rise. Manmohan Singh has increased the price of onion and petrol and diesel,” was the common refrain.

Despite Sahare having pleaded with many women to join the Congress meeting, only 30 women, men and youths turned up. As Sahare and Jaiswal literally begged people to vote for the Congress, housewife Kumari Soni asked them why there was no compensation for families rendered homeless for the Rowghat track project. 

Mathur raised the issue of security for women in the state and also referred to the Maoist massacre of Congress leaders in Bastar. She promised her party would provide better security to women. But Soni and others did not look convinced.

BJP too grilled

The supporters of BJP candidate from Dondilohara Hori Lal Rawte are also in for serious grilling. There are at least seven primary school employees – cooks and peons employed for mid day meal scheme etc – who have not been paid salary for 13 months. Sulochana, a widow who is employed as a cook in a primary school, claims that around 300 such employees have not been paid salaries in Dondi block for several months.

People are also extremely cut up with current BJP MLA Nilima Tekam and her husband Lal Mahant Tekam who have represented Dondilohara in Chhattisgarh assembly for the last 10 years. Parasram, a mine worker, was furious that Nilima Tekam never visited his locality. “I have not seen her even once in last five years,” Parasram swore, with people around him nodding in approval. 

Parasram said he fears violence may break out if the candidates take to door-to-door campaigning in his place.

Unlike the Congress and the BJP, the independents and candidates belonging to smaller parties are finding the going smooth. First, people do not take them seriously. Second, they do not lecture people and move on after handing over their pamphlets to residents. 

In case there is no one to receive the pamphlet, they simply push it inside from under the door. 

Apart from Rawte and Bhedia, National People’s Party (former Lok Sabha speaker PA Sangma’s party) Ghanaram Thakur, Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha’s Janak Lal Thakur, Gondwana Ganatantra Party’s Tukaram alias Tekula and many independents are in the fray from the constituency which goes to polls in the second phase on November 19.  

Blaming the civic mess in Kelabadi to lack of funds with the municipality, Mukti remarked, “The state sanctions only a fraction of our demand. How do we carry out development?”