Netas campaign early morning, evening to escape afternoon heat
Times of India | 21 April 2024
Kolkata: Behala resident Sandip Ghosh was returning home from office on Monday evening when he heard slogans and saw a big procession marching towards him from the opposite side in his lane. Surprised at the flurry of activities at this time of the day, he took a closer look to realise it was an rally, led by Trinamool Kolkata South candidate Mala Roy, who greeted passersby from an open jeep, fitted with fans.
A day earlier, Motilal Agarwal was out on morning walk at Ahiritola Ghat, when a group of men gathered around him with folded hands. A man stepped forward, shook his hands and sought his vote. It was Tapas Roy, BJP’s Kolkata North candidate.
Soaring temperature has forced Lok Sabha poll candidates to modify their campaigning style and schedule, besides taking measures to ensure well-being of their supporters as well as themselves. Avoiding campaigning between noon and 4 pm, wearing light, comfortable clothes, sporting hats and sunglasses and tanking up on fluids: these are some of the steps that candidates and their poll managers have adopted to recalibrate their campaign strategies amid the scorching heat. The EC, too, had issued an advisory ahead of the elections following IMD declaring the country’s possibility of a hotter start to the summer.
To avoid the blistering heat, candidates have been meeting voters while out on walks or on their way to the market in the morning and then, resuming campaigning—rallies and street corner meetings—after sunset. Most have minimised canvassing on foot during the day and plenty of water is ensured at all time. “I have been having adequate water while campaigning. I also avoid warm beverages,” said Mala Roy, dressed in a white cotton sari, after her roadshow in Behala on Monday evening. Trinamool’s Kolkata North candidate Sudio Bandyopadhyay has been taking out rallies in the evenings and having daab water regularly.
Parliamentary constituencies like Kolkata North, Kolkata South, Jadavpur, Dum Dum, Barasat and some others will go to polls on June 1. Candidates there will have to campaign the longest and amid peak-summer temperature. Tapas Roy is starting his canvassing by 7 am. “The campaign will continue for a long time and the weather will get hotter. We are careful about the health of our workers. So we are trying to reach out to voters in the morning and evening to avoid exposing them to the heat,” said Roy.
Afternoons, when the temperature is at their peak, have been kept aside for indoor meetings to discuss strategies and social media campaigns. Trinamool’s Behrampore candidate Yusuf Pathan schedules his meetings with party workers and the social media team between noon and 4 pm. “He takes feedback from campaign committees, discusses social media strategies and goes through next day’s schedule. People generally stay indoors in the afternoon. So, there is no point campaigning at that time,” said one of Yusuf’s campaign managers.
Trinamool’s Jadavpur candidate Saayoni Ghosh sports sunglasses and light coloured, comfortable clothes while out for canvassing. She has also been visiting markets in the mornings and doing roadshows in the evenings.
BJP Kolkata South Debasree candidate Chaudhuri took out a rally from Dhakuria to Rashbehari Avenue only after 5.45pm on Monday. “We are ensuring the candidate stays well hydrated. Most poll-related programmes on the streets are kept before 11 am and after 5 pm,” said a party functionary.
Party workers of a heavy weight candidate have been instructed that nobody should offer warm beverages or food to the candidate while campaigning. They have also been told to discourage people from the area from doing so. “It is very hot and the candidate has age-related issues. We have instructed party workers not to offer any warm beverage or food,” said a senior party functionary.