Rain continued to lash sub-Himalayan Bengal and Sikkim even on Saturday, much to the inconvenience of people, especially candidates of different political parties contesting the Lok Sabha polls.
In districts like Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar, some of the candidates chose to brave the rains and continue their campaign. The same situation was witnessed in Sikkim, where both Lok Sabha and Assembly elections would be held on April 19.
Over the past couple of days, it started raining in this region. During the past 24 hours, it rained consistently in most towns and villages.
On Saturday morning, Manoj Tigga, the BJP candidate of Alipurduar, reached Birpara tea estate amid rain. Tigga, who was a tea worker, walked around the plantations and spoke with tea workers on duty.
Manoj Tigga, the BJP candidate for Alipurduar Lok Sabha seat, campaigns at the plantations of Birpara tea estate amid rain on Saturday Anirban Choudhury
“My party colleagues had earlier told me about a forecast of rain for some days. But the election is due in less than a month’s time (Alipurduar goes to polls on phase 1, April 19), and I can’t afford to sit back at home in the rain. I have to cover an extensive area. So I am campaigning despite the rain,” said Tigga, as he plucked tea leaves.
Prakash Chik Baraik, whom Trinamul has fielded against Tigga, reached Nagrakata, an Assembly segment in neighbouring Jalpaiguri district that falls under the Alipurduar Lok Sabha seat.
As he started campaigning, he too faced rain. Eventually, his associates arranged polythene sheets to make a temporary canopy so that Baraik did not get drenched.
“We have to reach out to people across the constituency. I will continue my campaign in the rains,” said Baraik.
In Siliguri subdivision, Gopal Lama, the Darjeeling Trinamul candidate was seen reaching Panitanki at the Nepal border to check out the damage caused by a fire in a local market amid the rain. Lama and party workers walked into the area with umbrellas.
However, he had to postpone a Holi celebration arranged in the Shivmandir area on the outskirts of Siliguri. “Because of rainfall, there was fear of lower turnout. Thus, the event has been postponed,” said a Trinamul source.
On Friday, weather experts hinted that rainfall would affect the first phase of the election campaign till the end of this month.
In Cooch Behar, the campaigns of Trinamul and the BJP got affected because of a sudden intense spell of rain in the evening.
Sources at the regional Met office in Calcutta said that there was a forecast of rainfall during the next three-four days in sub-Himalayan Bengal and Sikkim.
In the past 24 hours, that is, till 8.30am on Saturday, it rained 80mm in Bagdogra and between 40mm and 60mm across different locations of the Dooars.
“Rainfall has also been reported from different locations of Sikkim,” said the source.
The downpour has also dragged down maximum temperature in different hill towns and in the plains.
In Darjeeling, the maximum temperature in the past 24 hours was 8.6 degrees Celsius, which is seven notches below normal in the fourth week of March.
The maximum temperature in Kalimpong was 13 degrees, nine degrees below normal.
The mercury was 12.6 degrees in Sikkim capital Gangtok, six degrees below normal, the IMD data said.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed and want the weather to improve by Monday during Holi celebrations. This is a festive occasion which provides an opportunity to all the candidates and political leaders to reach out to people from different walks of life across different venues,” said a senior Trinamul functionary in Siliguri.
