Chief minister Raghubar Das launched the BJP’s mass contact programme on Wednesday to drum up support for the party in the run-up to the coming elections by undertaking a whirlwind tour of three areas in his Jamshedpur East constituency, going door-to-door, meeting people and distributing stickers with the slogan, “Mera Parivar Bhajpa Parivar”.
Das, who visited Chhayanagar, Chhandinagar and Deonagar, was there for over one and-a-half hours. The stickers bore pictures of senior leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party national president Amit Shah, state party president Laxman Gilua and the chief minister himself, along with the BJP’s lotus symbol.
The chief minister’s first stop was at Chhayanagar where he reached at 10am. Accompanied by 100 supporters, he went from house to house, speaking to residents and putting up BJP flags.
“Bharat ka Tiranga desh ka jaan hain, BJP ka jhanda desh ke liye shaan hain (India’s Tricolour is the life of the country and the BJP flag is the pride of the country),” Das told a woman while installing a flag on the gate of her house and pasting a sticker.
The chief minister also visited a community hall that was built with resources from his MLA fund in December last year and addressed a gathering.
“I ask residents of these urban slums not to get carried away by lies that the government planned to demolish houses in Chhayanagar. I would like to assure you that no houses will be demolished in any of these urban slums. Our government has made it clear that demolition, if at all necessary for development projects, will be done only after rehabilitation of affected families,” said Das.
The chief minister then went towards Chhandinagar and interacted with a group of people while handing over party flags and stickers.
“We are committed to provide houses under PMAY schemes. We are also committed to provide basic infrastructure like proper lights, roads, drinking water, drains and sewage facilities in each urban slum. Work has already started with Jusco agreeing to provide electricity and water,” he said, adding that the government was also providing skill training to youths to enable them to get jobs.
“I would like to encourage women to form sakhi mandals and obtain the benefit of state government schemes to improve their financial condition,” he said.
The chief minister also interacted with inmates of a leprosy ashram at Deonagar in Baradwari and distributed party flags and stickers before leaving for his residence at Agrico. By 1pm, the chief minister left for Ranchi. Before that he held talks with Jusco officials for improving facilities at Agrico Ground by building toilets and providing drinking water facilities.
According BJP sources, Chhayanagar, Chhandinagar and Deonagar localities are politically significant.
“Each of these densely populated urban slums, with population in excess of 4,000, is important politically as most of m owe allegiance to Dulal Bhu-iyan, a former JMM minister now with the Congress. However, we want to win them over by providing civic facilities,” said a senior district BJP functionary.