General Elections to Lok Sabha 2024
By Vipul Dhasmana
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands have a unique pan India social presence of civilian population. Settlers of various categories, government servants and businessmen have strong roots in the mainland. The civic society is also a blend of the active service personnel as well as ex-servicemen from the Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Coast Guard and the Union Territory Police Marine Force. Over the years, with a growing telecommunication and web based social network, influence of the mainland on the islands has greatly increased.
In Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Lok Sabha 2024 election will be a crucial event for many reasons, as the opinion of the public and their voting pattern matters a lot in influencing any democratic elections, since they hail from pan India. Demography has changed a lot. Nobody is a permanent citizen of the islands, leaving apart the tribals, because the general public does not have right over their land, even if they want to settle in the islands. Ownership of land is a major issue with those who came seeking a bright future in the various islands of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The Union Government has been trying to introduce development, purely focussing on the leverage that could be taken because of Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ international strategic location, eventually giving not much attention to addressing the basic needs of the public, i.e. roadways, airways and waterways connectivity, besides issues of poor power supply, drinking water, sanitation, higher education, medical facilities, etc.
Over the past five years, in spite of the best efforts of the Indian National Congress Member of Parliament, Kuldeep Rai Sharma, not much of a mark in development of the islands has been made, as per the expectations of the residents. The Congress has not been able to address public issues in coordination with the established Panchayat Raj Institutions of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The history of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands has always been glorified, but the truth is that the islanders feel cheated by the people’s representatives, and their resentment could be a gamechanger in the forthcoming Lok Sabha 2024 elections.
INC won against the BJP from Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the last general elections to the Lok Sabha. The present MP Kuldeep Rai Sharma was elected from Andaman and Nicobar Islands constituency for the first time. The islanders are yet to hear from INC as to what would be their issues highlighted in the election manifesto.
Former Member of Parliament Bishnu Pada Ray, who was elected to the 13th, 15th and 16th Lok Sabha from Andaman and Nicobar Islands constituency, has been chosen by the BJP as its candidate for the Lok Sabha, this year. He strongly believes in promoting employment opportunities in the isles by building into the system measures that facilitate this. He promises to ensure conduct of railway and defence recruitment drives in the isles for the unemployed youth of the Islands.
Bishnu Pada Ray (born 19 June, 1950), in 1999, was elected to the 13th Lok Sabha from Andaman and Nicobar Islands constituency. He was re-elected from the same constituency to the 15th Lok Sabha in 2009 and to the 16th Lok Sabha in 2014.
Meanwhile, the BJP became the first national political party to release its Sankalp Patra 2024 for the Andaman & Nicobar Islands promising to recognise and declare 10th March as ‘Andaman Day’ to honour those freedom fighters who were brought to these islands for the first time on 10 March, 1858. The election manifesto also promises employment generation, ownership of land, OBC status to settlers. Tourism, shipping, fisheries issues have been prominently addressed besides strengthening civic amenities like providing 24 hours power and water throughout the islands.
Shipping, the lifeline of intra and inter islands will be modernised by promoting port infrastructure and equipment. World class passenger Sea Port Terminal at Shaheed Dweep, ensuring mainland passenger and cargo ship service at Mayabunder and Diglipur, dredging silt at Mus jetty with protective walls around the island which falls under Nicobar Islands besides developing Malacca jetty as second jetty for use during adverse season has been promised in the election manifesto.
The Sankalp Patra 2024 highlights the implementation of Inland Vessels Act 2021 and its Rules 2022 in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands aiming to promote ease of doing business and ensuring maximum safety in cargo and passenger transportation including promoting watersports activities. With this, Andaman and Nicobar islands will become the first Union Territory of our country to implement the marine law that would benefit the common islander’s economy by promoting multifarious growth in the tourism sector, by introduction of a digital facility for registration of inland vessels that comprise the majority of tourism related water sports boats and infrastructure.
The airways and roadways besides medical, health and education infrastructures will be strengthened for an overall development of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. A master plan for water management will be ensured by creating a water board to reduce pressure on existing dams. Hurdles will be removed in land revenue addressing issues of ownership, diversion, circle rate, stamp duty, registration charges of apartments and promulgating new land law incorporating the current needs and expectations of the islanders.
According to Dr R Dev Das, member of the committee for drafting the Andaman and Nicobar BJP Sankalp Patra 2024, the vision is also to request create a committee to be headed by at least MoS (Home) with Member of Parliament and elected heads of Zila Parishad and members of Tribal Council as members to oversee implementation of Centrally Sponsored Schemes and Schemes of Administration; restoring the powers of Panchayati Raj Institutions and Urban Body of Andaman and Nicobar Islands; promoting higher medical, legal and service industries education; creating a dedicated Information Technology Directorate emphasising on developing Port Blair as IT hub; framing of Industrial Estate Rule; setting up of industrial units to establish forward linkages in order to create branding for marine products of isles; for the prosperity of the isles.
(Vipul Dhasmana is a Marine Consultant turned Journalist)
