In a riot-affected area, voters junk communal issues for basic amenities

For the area that has seen the gruesome communal violence in February 2020, basic issues — proper roads, drainage, dispensary and parks are on their top priority list.
Locals face flooding during heavy rains due to poor drainage system. (Photo | Express)
Locals face flooding during heavy rains due to poor drainage system. (Photo | Express)

NEW DELHI: The Sadatpur ward of Karawal Nagar in north-east Delhi, which is well-known for the Purvanchali and Uttrakhand diaspora in the city, is more concerned with basic issues than communal ones. Despite the fact that the ward had been the most severely affected by the 2020 north-east Delhi riots, locals avoided communal issues in this election.

For the area that has seen the gruesome communal violence in February 2020, basic issues — proper roads, drainage, dispensary and parks are on their top priority list. Jyot Singh Rana, 61, said that he did not see any development work in the area in the last five years, “The streets were first dug out for sewer work but later they forgot to make it.”

Similarly, Puneet Yadav, a 25-year-old local, voiced his displeasure with the sewage situation in the neighbourhood. Pointing at a drainage swarming with dirt, he stated, “This is the development that the people of Sadatpur got in the last five years.”

“During the heavy rain, this drain water flooded into our houses. The drain gets de-slitted once a year by the civic agency.” Yadav further said that there is no dispensary or hospital in the area, “People have to go either Hindu Rao Hospital or Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital for minor diseases like cold flu,” he continued.
Pointing to the municipal park, another resident said that the municipal in this area made only one park.

“Our kids have to play on the concrete roads as councillors never paid attention to our needs.” The BJP has a stronghold in this region as the party has been victorious in this ward for more times than the last three elections. Neeta Bisht, a former councillor, was put forward by the party this year, while Manoj Tyagi, a councillor from Khajuri Khas ward, received a chance. The area comprises a mixed population of the middle and lower-middle class. The Uttrakhand and Purvanchali voters are pivotal for for the elections.

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