BIJLI, SADAK, PANI; No more poll issue in Punjab, Haryana

The beginning of the new century 11 years ago saw Bijli, Sadak and Pani (BSP) emerging as the only poll agenda for the political parties and people in the country. Elections after election were fought on the issue. Those who delivered on the three fronts won; others lost. Punjab and Haryana were no exception to the new rule.

But a subtle difference has now emerged in the second decade of the century as BSP, considered the most basic aspect of development, is more or less abundant in both Haryana and Punjab as they are prosperous in terms of per capita income, agricultural prowess, inflow of NRI money and infrastructure compared to other states of the country. It has ceased to be a poll issue, at least in these two states.

So what counts for the electorate now when they have sufficient power, road and water (BSP) and the basic aspects of development hardly matter to them, the way it would have mattered say in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal or Madhya Pradesh. I am bringing the issue on the table as Punjab stares at the Assembly elections, to be held in another four months and neighbouring Haryana has a Lok Sabha bye-election which has the potential to make or break the political fortunes of the three contenders for the seat.

In Punjab, Bijli or power is heavily subsidised for those in the rural areas and the farmers. In Haryana too, the government has done what it can on the power front. Nothing more can be done on this front unless both the states decide that they want to commit hara-kiri and go bankrupt willingly with the firm belief that you can always have a free launch, come what may. So there are no promises of a free power or subsidised power anymore. Nothing can be done on this front as everything has already been done. Obviously you can promise 24x7 power, no one is even asking for that and none of the parties are promising it.

Now let us come to Sadak or roads in the two states. Whoever has been in power in the two states since their reorganization in 1966, roads have been a priority so much so that almost all the villages and wherever a few people live, has been connected with motorable roads now. Nothing much can be done here except perhaps widening of the roads for which land acquisition is a must and none of the farmers are going to willingly let you acquire even a yard without making loud noises. So roads as an electoral issue have also, for all practical purposes, been ruled out.

The third factor is Pani or water. Both the states fight each other like warring cousins for water and that has been happening ever since Haryana was carved out of Punjab. Issues like sharing of water from the Bhakra Dam, the Sutlej-Yamuna link canal etc has been raked up time and again. Now the Hansi-Butana canal issue and the construction of a wall by Haryana is being raked up by the rival political parties on either side of the divide. But the question is, are there any takers for the issue? It is only the parties which have been raising the question; the voters do not know how it will benefit them or deprive them.

Prosperity has ensured that the farmers in both these states use the latest boring machines and get as much water as they want without depending on the government to bring canal water to their fields. If the level of water goes down, scientific awareness about crops have ensured that they do not sow the water intensive crops like paddy and shift to some profitable cash crop. Or for that matter, they increase their investment in machines and drill further if they still want to continue with the traditional crops.

The point is that BSP is no longer an issue in Punjab and also Haryana. The two states have grown beyond these basic elements of development. They want more than merely power, road and water. Their aspiration has grown manifold.

So what are the parties contesting the polls offering them in the changed milieu? A cursory look at the poll campaign for the Hisar Lok Sabha seat and the build up to the Punjab assembly polls suggests that nothing much is being offered to the voters fatigued by the traditional BSP (Bijli, Sadak and Pani).

In Haryana, the ruling Congress is comparing the seven years of its rule with what INLD’s Om Prakash Chautala did before 2004. How many schools and engineering colleges it opened, how many SCs got benefit, how many widows and handicapped got pensions in its regime than that of Chautala. Even routine administrative decisions are being touted as “great” achievements. I am sure a lot of younger voters do not even know what happened when Chautala was in power.

And let us see what Chautala is offering. Nothing at all. It is only criticising what Congress and Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has not done, something which cannot be quantified. There is no vision and no plan, nothing to offer to the youth. The third contender for the seat, Kuldeep Bishnoi of the Congress too has nothing except the “emotional quotient” as the seat fell vacant following the death of his father, Bhajan Lal.

In Punjab, it is on more or less the same pattern. The SAD-BJP government went on an announcement spree from around March this year, thinking that people have short memory and they would remember the largesse if given at the last moment. The first four years of the government went without any major achievement to boast of. But now, the Punjab government has turned out to be a Santa Clause for everyone – government servants, police force, revenue officials, school girls, cancer patients…everyone. Most of these are only financial inducement, clearly meant to sway public opinion and the voters at a time when a fiscal crisis is staring the state.

Congress too has failed to offer anything so far in the run-up to the campaign, except criticising what the SAD-BJP has done. Anything the government does – good or bad – Congress is first to jump at a conclusion and condemn the move. Without offering any alternative, it thinks that being critical of the government and the natural anti-incumbency would catapult it to the throne. And in the bipolar politics of Punjab, it has to be either the SAD-BJP or the Congress. There is no other choice.

So even as the millennium has changed, the profile of voters is changing drastically every five years and getting younger all the while, technology has changed beyond recognition in the five years gone by, the leaders remain the same and the promises and action plan too remains the same. The fatigued voters definitely deserve better – a long-term vision beyond the obvious which comprises a holistic employment policy, land acquisition, health sector reforms, education to name a few. The debate needs to be raised at a higher pedestal. (October 2, 2011)

(The writer is Senior Editor, The Pioneer, Chandigarh)

http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/chandigarh/10479-bijli-sadak-pani.html