BERHAMPUR: With elections inching closer, politicians in Ganjam district are leaving no stone unturned in getting back migrant labourers working outside the state. Local leaders in the district are reportedly compiling lists of migrant workers from their respective areas and persuading their relatives or friends to encourage the workers to return home to cast their votes.
According to sources, more than 7 lakh migrant workers from Ganjam, scattered across various states in search of livelihoods, return to their native places to participate in elections. For these migrant workers, returning home during elections serves a dual purpose – exercising their franchise and engaging in campaign activities for their preferred candidates. Many are brought back to their home towns at the expense of party leaders, who also provide them with opportunities to earn additional income through participation in electioneering.
The migrant workers of Ganjam primarily reside in cities such as Surat, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru. This effort of the parties to mobilise migrant workers for electoral purposes is not new. In the run-up to the 2019 general elections, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, to seek support from Odia voters indirectly, attended the Odisha Mahotsav organised in cities like Surat. Similarly, during the 2022 panchayat polls, leaders from major political parties visited cities like Surat to court Odia voters, covering their travel expenses to ensure their participation in the electoral process.