The 50,000-odd powerloom workers and their dependent family members hold the key to the outcome of election to the prestigious Sircilla Assembly constituency where Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s son and Industries Minister K.T. Rama Rao is seeking election for the fourth time.
There are about 2,250 sheds in narrow lanes of Sircilla town which emit a sound jarring to the ear of a new visitor when the looms are in production mode, day in and day out. But, they are bread and butter to 13,500 workers who are directly employed in them, 5,000 other indirect beneficiaries and hundreds of owners.
The demographic distribution of loom workers in Sircilla constituency with a voter strength of 2.08 lakh makes a curious study as they are not only based here but also in Surat and Bhiwandi. Thanks to several orders placed by TRS government with the looms for production of cloth in the last two years, the workers are more than willing to credit the ruling party for their secure livelihood for at least eight months in a year. The TRS hoped that this initiative will translate into vote for Mr. Rao.
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Major orders
Echoing the sentiment, a shed owner Kodam Ravinder expressed apprehensions of workers at the prospect of Congress withdrawing production of sarees for Batukamma festival, Christmas and Ramzan, sarees gifted as part of KCR kits, school uniforms under Rajiv Vidya Mission and cloth for various other welfare schemes. The sarees for Batukamma alone measured 6.26 crore metres and cost ₹ 280 crore this year. The contest in Sircilla is mainly between Mr. K.T. Rama Rao and Mr. K.K. Mahender Reddy of the Congress though 11 others are also in fray. For Mr. Reddy who lost to Mr. Rao by only 171 votes as an independent in 2009, this will be his third contest.
Mr. Reddy attributed the success of his rival twice in 2009 to the strong separate Telangana movement and, in 2014, to exaggerated stories of his father. He kept telling people in door-to-door campaign and street corner meetings that he was a native whereas Mr. Rao was dropped from Hyderabad.
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The pamphlet of Mr. Reddy cited a promise of Congress to give free power for 10 looms in a unit (one shed). The TRS has been giving 50 % subsidy on power, irrespective of consumption, at ₹ four a unit.
The Congress has blamed the government for going back on its promise to convert workers to owners, give them double bedroom houses and awarding work for Batukamma sarees to only the mutually aided cooperative societies run by TRS activists.