Bhopal: With reports that farmer distress was the biggest factor that decided the outcome in Madhya Pradesh polls, a report on the voting pattern in the state suggests that voters in both the rural and urban pockets were driven more by better employment opportunities than agrarian distress while voting.
The Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) released a detailed report on the voting patterns of MP polls on Thursday that in rural areas 59% of the respondents claimed better employment options was on top of their priorities, while better prices for farm products remained the issue for 56% voters and 40% of the voters were concerned with electricity for their farmlands.
Despite a high rate of joblessness in the state, surprisingly only 4% of the rural voters reckon training for jobs as an issue.
Other rural issues included subsidy on seeds/fertilizers, availability of water for fertilizers and agri-loan availability.
Other amenities, including better roads, transport, potable water and women empowerment, also remained among issues for those who responded to the survey conducted by the ADR.
Like their rural counterparts, urban voters too deemed better job opportunities a prominent issue with 70% of the respondents listing this as a major issue. Exhibiting a mindset like their rural counterparts, only 9% of these voters considered that job training was an issue.
For 45% voters, better healthcare remained prominent poll issue while 41% wanted better policing, law and order.
Infrastructural subjects like better roads, lanes for cyclists and pedestrians and better public transport did not find much resonance with the urban voters.
Noise and air pollution were listed as priority by 24% and 23% voters and to the surprise of many only 10% listed illegal mining/quarrying as an issue. To add, MP has been hassled by the latter in last few years and the Congress had made it a prominent poll issue.
In another surprise, only 20% of urban voters considered women empowerment and safety as a problem despite the fact that MP ranks very high among states witnessing crimes against women.
Strong military, terrorism and encroachment of public lakes/land remained non–issues for both rural and urban voters.
The respondents (voters) were asked to offer their responses on 25 issues of governance as part of the survey ‘Expectations of the Voters from MP and their perception on the performance of the government’ conducted by the ADR.
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