Farm Loan Waivers, Women Power: What Vellore Wants from 2019 Polls

People of Vellore open up on how they would evaluate the last five years & their expectations from the next leader.

People of Vellore, Tamil Nadu open up on their expectations from the 2019 elections.

(Photo: The Quint)

The 2019 elections are gaining momentum with Narendra Modi’s BJP, Rahul Gandhi’s Congress, and a third regional party front – an idea Mamata Banerjee and K Chandrashekar Rao have been floating – vying for the hot seat.

With the clock ticking away, parties are promising farm loan waivers, minimum income guarantee, jobs and more to maximise their vote bank...but what do the people of India want to see in the manifesto?

The Quint, in its chaupal series, travelled to Vellore in Tamil Nadu and quizzed TNPSC (Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission) aspirants on how they would evaluate the last five years and their expectations from the next leader.

‘Ease Farmer Distress’

While many applauded the government for the welfare schemes, they pointed out that the biggest problem has been implementation.

“Modi has brought in a lot of schemes but people are not aware of these. There needs to be a mechanism to make sure these reach the lowest strata of the society for everyone to benefit,” said a woman.

They added that the primary focus of the government should be to address farmers issues and lighten the burden of their loans. “Even if they are not completely waived, at least waiving 50% will really give support for agriculture. In the last budget, they brought in e-markets, schemes to double farmers' incomes. What I want is for the next government is to completely waive farm loans,” said an aspirant.

‘Need Prominent Leadership Roles for Women’

All the women in the room responded in chorus that in order to attend to women’s issues effectively, it was imperative that women have prominent leadership roles in the cabinet.

“They should increase the quota for women. Women in rural areas are still not aware of schemes. That's because there is not much education for women in such areas and the government needs to concentrate on that,” a woman said, stressing on education for the girl child.