 "A polling official leaves a strong room in Patiala on Friday | Photo: PTI")
As the 18th Lok Sabha elections move closer to the finale on June 4, when the fate of the 8,360 candidates in the fray will get decided, the streets of Delhi too are buzzing with activity despite the scorching heat.
From florists in Ghazipur’s phool mandi to sweet shop owners in Old Delhi’s Chandni Chowk, the preparations, if not the sales, have already begun.
Across the country, the Election Commission has made elaborate arrangements for the counting day. In the counting centres in Guwahati, for example, where communication links have been hit aftercyclone ‘Remal’ and the onset of Monsoon, the EC has made provisions for the installation of additional power back up.
Some candidates, such as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s Chandni Chowk contestant Praveen Khandelwal, plans to install large screens across his constituency for traders to catch up on the counting trends. A cinema hall chain has tied up with a private news channel and announced that it will screen the election results live on June 4.
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The flower markets in Delhi expect good sales on Tuesday. “The prices are almost 80 per cent up, already,” says Arjun Kumar, owner of Arjun Kumar Phool Wale from Ghazipur. “Apart from rose and marigold petals, the order for garlands is seeing a demand surge”, he says, while noting that though the cost varies frequently, the starting price for one big garland can go upto Rs 1,000. “The price surge is expected to go up,” Kumar adds. Another florist from Neelam Flora highlights that small shop owners see a huge demand. “Winning candidates buy from the local shops, mostly,” he says.
While florists remain positive about the sales, sweet shop owners and merchandise sellers are keeping it low, at least until the exit polls, some till the afternoon of the result day.
“We have mostly wrapped up the election merchandise for the season,” says Harpreet Singh, owner of GV Traders in Sadar Bazaar. “Usually, the candidates buy flags, etc. in bulk and store it for the result day,” Singh says. Ram Temple merchandise remains in demand throughout the year, but if the BJP wins, “we may see some more sales”. Another shopkeeper from Sadar Bazaar’s HSFY Creations says that for something as unpredictable as politics, we avoid making bulk orders in advance. “However, we are making few orders for BJP’s merchandise,” he adds.
Chaina Ram Sindhi Halwai, of Chandni Chowk, has been a frequent stop for political leaders. But the owner Hari Gidwani says, “there are enough locals as well to buy from here….’’ On the other side of the road is Meghraj and Sons, another sweet shop of Chandni Chowk. “We do get orders, muh toh sab mittha karate hain,” he says.
The firecracker industry, once an election season gainer, fails to see the buzz. “The craze for crackers seems to be on the decline,” says the owner of Kaliswari fireworks from Delhi’s Daryaganj. “During local elections, we see some sales but general elections are different.” Sanjay Kumar from Harsh Kumar Fireworks says politics has severely hampered cracker industry, “It is uncertain that they will bring any surge to our sales”. Cracker shopkeepers also note the heat factor for the low sales. “In such a weather, who will burst crackers,” a shopkeeper at Kaliswami Firecrackers says. “We hope to get some gulaal sales. However, there is no surge as yet,” says the owner of Sadar Bazaar’s Khalsa Colour Company. The party workers, however, are yet to plan the course of action for June 4.
“As the voting ends tomorrow, we have a party meeting. Future action plans may be decided then,” says a BJP party worker. While Congress workers said that they are keeping a close watch on the exit polls before planning, those of Aam Aadmi Party are keeping Arvind Kejriwal’s bail plea decision in mind before planning grand celebrations.
(With inputs from Nisha Anand)
