Priyanka exhorts Cong. workers to address people’s issues ahead of polls

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress MP, with a child during a meeting of UDF booth-level workers in Wayanad on February 8.
| Photo Credit: special arrangement

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi has urged party workers to actively engage in addressing people’s issues in view of the upcoming elections to the local bodies and the State Assembly.

She was addressing booth-level activists of the United Democratic Front in her Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency on Saturday. Ms. Vadra attended meetings in Mananthavady, Sulthan Bathery and Kalpetta Assembly segments.

The Congress leader claimed that the people of Wayanad had welcomed her as a family member and it was a new experience for her. She said that though she had been handling the election campaigns of her mother and brother at Rae Bareli and Amethi, the contest in Wayanad was a different experience and she had concerns in the beginning. Ms. Vadra pointed out that she had to concentrate even on the booth-level work in Uttar Pradesh. But in Wayanad, she had to focus only on the campaign as booth-level leaders and workers took charge of every thing. She added that Rahul Gandhi, her brother, had earlier indicated to her about this different style of campaigning. This could be emulated in other States.

Describing the night traffic ban on the national highway connecting Waynad and the Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka as “a complicated and complex issue”, Ms. Vadra said that discussions had been initiated with various stakeholders. About the human-animal conflict, she said that three people had been killed by elephants in the past one-and-a-half months alone. “Recently, I was here to visit the family of a woman who was killed in a tiger attack… Man-animal conflict is a big issue in terms of livelihood and human rights. The district authorities are saying they need more funds to address the issue,” she pointed out.

She said progress was slowly being made in the development of the Government Medical College Hospital in Wayanad, adding that it was a key issue they would continue to fight for. “Some small steps of progress are being made slowly. We need to push and pressurise the government to speed up the developments,” she added.

Ms. Vadra said that tourism in Wayanad had suffered after the tragic landslides at Mundakkai-Chooralmala and stressed the need for revival efforts. “Many months have passed since the tragic landslides, yet people are still suffering. They still lack proper housing and full compensation. Because of our efforts in and outside Parliament, it was at least declared a disaster of severe nature. Hopefully, more funds will come,” she added.