Rain emerges as a damper for Panchayat poll campaign

Alipurduar: Rain has emerged as a major damper for the Panchayat election campaigns in North Bengal. Continuous rainfall has been occurring since Saturday in different districts of North Bengal.

This rain has washed away many campaign events. Although some candidates are campaigning from house to house with umbrellas, no political parties have been able to hold any small or large meetings yet.

With only 18 days left till voting on July 8, the campaign’s initial disruption due to rain has caused concern.

The forecast from the weather office has further left them in a lurch. Gopinath Raha, the Head of Meteorological Center in Gangtok, stated: “Heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected in the districts of North Bengal until June 22. Red warnings have been issued for several districts, including Alipurduar and Cooch Behar. However, some weather changes are expected from June 22 onwards.”

Bhaskar Majumder, TMC general secretary, Alipurduar, said: “Despite heavy rain, all leaders are campaigning from house to house with umbrellas. No meetings or gatherings have been held due to the rain so far. However, the ‘Didir Dut’ and ‘Nabajowar’ initiatives will help us stay ahead in the campaign.”

Vishal Lama, MLA from Kalchini and BJP leader, said: “Campaigning for the Panchayat polls is being affected by inclement weather. If this continues, it will be nearly impossible to campaign. A meeting scheduled at Malangi Tea Gardens on Sunday had to be cancelled due to rain. Many meetings in different parts of the district have been cancelled owing to rain.”

On Sunday, it rained throughout the day in Alipurduar, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar and Kalimpong. The Jalpaiguri district administration issued a yellow warning for un-protected areas of the Teesta.