Trinamul Plans Early Campaign in Tea Gardens to Win Back Supporters

In preparation for the Lok Sabha elections, Trinamul has devised a plan to win over supporters in the tea garden districts of north Bengal. This plan calls for an early campaign that emphasises the state's estate-based programs.

Four Lok Sabha seats are decided by the results of parliamentary elections in the tea garden region, where Trinamul has historically performed badly.

The party's district head and Rajya Sabha member Prakash Chik Baraik declared: "We will launch our campaign in the tea estates right now. We've made a list of individuals to see at the booth level, and we'll begin setting up quick meetings all around the area right after Diwali.

Leaders of Trinamul are optimistic that the state government's emphasis on tea estates would pay off. But we also have to continuously draw attention to the efforts of our administration, Baraik stated.

After Abhishek Banerjee, the national general secretary of Trinamul, visited Malbazar, a town in the Jalpaiguri district, and the state decided to establish clinics and crèches in tea gardens, development efforts in the gardens picked up speed. The North Bengal Development Department is carrying out these projects.

In some tea gardens, building of hospitals and crèches is now complete. North Bengal Development Minister Udayan Guha said, "We are getting ready for the chief minister to launch these projects."

According to sources, the state government planned to build around 60 creches and 44 hospitals in the tea belt. For each hospital, a total of Rs 1.46 crore has been set aside. The first funding allocated for the construction of the creches is Rs 1 lakh, according to a source.

For the Chai Sundari program, the state government is also building homes for tea workers. The government has made the decision to provide workers pattas, or land rights. We have chosen to concentrate on the tea belt right away since the government has made significant progress in the tea gardens," Guha said.

Regarding Trinamul's apathetic showing in the tea belt, a source said. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP secured every seat from the tea belt. In the Bengal Assembly elections of 2021, the BJP performed better than Trinamul.

In the 2022 civic and 2023 rural elections, Trinamul performed better. "In the tea belt, Trinamul won the majority of panchayat and municipality seats. According to a hill watcher, Trinamul intends to maintain this momentum in the area.

Abdur Rahim Boxi, a district president of Trinamul and local MLA in Malda, vowed to prevent BJP MP Khagen Murmu from visiting his Malda North seat and further said that the BJP would not be permitted to host any political events.

"Erosive damage is most severe in Ratua-I block, but the BJP MP has not stepped forward to assist the locals. However, since the Center is withholding cash, the people's situation has become worse, according to Boxi.

But Murmu challenged the Trinamul lawmaker to prevent him from going into his district. "It is true that leaders like Boxi embezzled funds provided by the Center, which is why Ratua is deprived," he said.