© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
The relentless rattling of powerlooms inside the Babla compound in Bhiwandi drowns the din of the ongoing campaign across the street which is buzzing with people halting for a ‘chai, pani’ outside tea/food stalls.
The cluster of powerlooms holed inside the sprawling Babla compound with uneven broken roads, scattered garbage and poor drainage is the only source of survival for hundreds of daily wagers doing 12-hour shifts.
Vijay Bahadur, a migrant from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, has made Bhiwandi his home for a decade. However, he is restless with no work for seven days. A short supply of raw material and summers are bad time for him. Plus, these polls have slowed down the supply. “It is recession time for powerlooms. Instead of two shifts, we are doing only one,” he said. As a result, workers have returned to their native places in UP. It also means lack of work and income. For employees, the income is evaluated on the basis of Rs 2.35 paise for a metre of cloth woven.
In the neighbouring powerloom, Aslam Sheikh is working on a bean where 4000-yarn threads are manually arranged using an iron needle. For every bean, depending on design and threads, the average income an employee earns is Rs 150 to 200. It takes about two hours. In a day, an individual can attempt five beans, provided there is work, he said.
For workers in powerlooms, elections are something distant. “Sach tau yeh hain ki kaam karenge tau kamaayenga (We will earn only if we work, that is the reality),” says Venkatesh Paskanti, a loom worker who is a migrant from Andhra Pradesh.
Bhiwandi in Thane district, which was once was called the Manchester of India, the powerloom industry is passing through turmoil, retaining just 7.5 to 8 lakh powerlooms with 4.5 lakh workers.
With rising expenditure, these old-fashioned powerlooms are failing to withstand international markets which are competitive. Over the years, Bhiwandi has transformed into a warehouse hub. The huge concrete structures on a row along the highways have given it a new identity.
With widened roads and highways, the infrastructure has given the backward district a makeover. But the declining work force in powerlooms remains the bigger challenge. In this year’s Lok Sabha elections, both Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi have promised to restore powerlooms to its glorious past. But for migrants who have spent several decades weaving cloth in dingy, dimly lit and poorly ventilated powerlooms, these are just poll promises. As Paskanti says, “No point in talking about polls and politics.”
Barely half-a-km away from Babla compound is the mobile campaign vehicle of Suresh Mhatre, NCP (SP) candidate. And next to it is that of BJP’s Union Minister Kapil Moreshwar Patil, who is the sitting MP from Bhiwandi. Although the contest for Bhiwandi seat is between Kapil Patil and Suresh Mhatre alias Balya Mama, there is an independent, Nilesh Samra, president of Jijau Sanghatana, who has given it a twist.
In rural Padga (Bhiwandi), villagers narrate with pride how Nilesh Samra is a grassroots worker who addresses their galli problems—bijli, pani. But those advocating Samra knows division of votes will help Patil or Mhatre. During his address, Kapil Patil appeals to people to give him another chance to serve. “We have done huge infrastructure work. If voted to power, I will ensure more work and address unemployment,” he said. He also promises better train connectivity between Bhiwandi and Mumbai.
But the NCP (SP) candidate argues, “People of Bhiwandi had elected BJP twice. But he did nothing for poor people. The basic amenities remain unaddressed in the city.” The state of powerlooms is in shambles, he adds. Local train connectivity between Bhiwandi and Mumbai is poor. People have to travel upto Kalyan which is expensive and distant, he argues.
Despite local problems which are raised in speeches, the election is being contested on national agenda. While BJP is seeking vote for PM Narendra Modi’s third term, NCP (SP) warns that Modi’s return would endanger democracy and Constitution.
The Bhiwandi constituency has three major communities–Muslims, Kunbhis, Agri. Both Patil and Mhatre belong to Agri community while Sambre belongs to Kunbhi community.
With communal polarisation across state, Muslims in Bhiwandi also seem to be veering around Mhatre who represents NCP (SP) which is part of Maha Vikas Aghadi. To consolidate BJP vote bank, Patil has elicited the support of local outfit Kunbhi Sena. He hopes that BJP along with Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) and NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) will be able to withstand the tough contest from Mhatre.
MVA’s decision to concede the Bhiwandi Lok Sabha seat to NCP (SP) has upset Congress. The Congress had staunchly opposed the decision. The party wanted to retain Bhiwandi seat for its candidate Suresh Taware. But NCP’s president Sharad Pawar prevailed and got the ticket for his party.
The unrest within Congress is an aspect Patil is relying on to get an edge. But NCP (SP) is quick to exploit the differences between Patil and BJP’s sitting MLA Kisan Kothre. However, BJP has made Bhiwandi a prestige seat. The PM addressed rally in Kalyan which also covered Bhiwandi constituency. On their part, Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray have aggressively campaigned.
In 2019, Kapil Patil (BJP) defeated Congress candidate Suresh Taware. In 2014, Kapil Patil defeated then Congress candidate Vishwanath Patil to retain the constituency. The Bhiwandi Lok Sabha seat has six assembly segments. It has two BJP MLAs, two Shiv Sena MLAs, one NCP and one SP MLAs. The polling in Bhiwandi will take place on May 20.
