Hyderabad: Bastis in the city have turned hotspots for campaigning in the GHMC elections. Bastis can make or mar the prospects of political parties in half of the total 150 municipal divisions.
The polling percentage recorded in bastis is over 75 per cent, as against less than 45 per cent in other areas.
All major parties are laying special focus on luring voters in bastis with promises of houses, ration cards and pensions.The GHMC covers 1,200 slums with an estimated 10 lakh voters.
“It’s the TD-BJP which provided pucca houses for the poor in slums when they were in power in state and at the Centre. Even in the 2BHK scheme of the TRS government, the Centre's contribution is '2 lakh per housing unit,” said state BJP president G. Kishan Reddy.
The Congress has been publicising the JNNURM scheme. Over 40,000 houses were built for the poor in slums when the Congress was in power. Such a massive housing scheme was never taken up by any other government,” said city Congress president Danam Nagender.
The TRS is banking on 2BHK scheme and waiver of nearly '500 crore power and electricity bill arrears in slums that had accumulated over the past 15 years.
“No government had bothered to waive arrears and slum dwellers were being harassed for payments. We have also reduced the property tax from '1,200 per year to a nominal '101. No government in the past has dared to provide a flat worth nearly '9 lakh for free for the poor as we are doing,” said city TRS president Mynampally Hanumantha Rao.
