Thane: Netas reach out to residents ahead of Bappa festival

THANE: The oncoming Ganeshotsav festival is likely to give a much required opportunity for political parties in Thane city to reach out to voters from their respective wards by arranging initiatives like free travel, vaccination, providing idols at nominal rates and holding decoration competitions during the festive season ahead of the corporation elections scheduled anytime next year.

Shiv Sena MLC Ravindra Phatak whose wife represents in the Thane corporation said he is arranging several initiatives and is in talks with few NGOs to conduct a vaccination drive for residents from his area. “The 18-44 age group segment is mobile but despite that hasn’t managed to get adequate doses. So I am ensuring this segment also gets adequately vaccinated,” he said.

Milind Patil, NCP corporator from Kalwa said the party has also arranged four bus services from Kalwa and other parts of the city to assist those travelling back home for the festival.

Shiv Sena MP Dr Shrikant Shinde informed the party has deployed over 250 bus services in Thane and Kalyan for those travelling to Konkan. “We have also distributed nearly 400 idols at nominal costs to families wanting to celebrate the festival but were unable to purchase them due to the financial crisis,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena has hired buses to dispatch devotees to their native land in Konkan. “We are dispatching over 100 bus services from Thane, suburbs to Konkan for the benefit of devotees in addition to arranging few encouragement sessions for household idol decoration. A mobile immersion van will also be deployed for the benefit of devotees,” informed Avinash Jadhav, Thane-Palghar district party president.

A political observer said such initiatives ahead of festivals holds immense importance for the political parties as they get an opportunity to connect with their prospective voter base and also register their presence in their respective wards. “All parties regularly hold such initiatives every year but with the elections round the corner, the tenor is likely to be higher,” said an expert.