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Vinod More, a 20-year-old budding volley player, is panting after three rounds of jogging at a massive ground near Vidya Pratisthan, the educational super complex created by Sharad Pawar and his family in Baramati, western Maharashtra.
Although the Pawar family has created educational institutions, there is no guarantee that he will get a good job in Maharashtra, said More, who has enrolled for a degree course in biotechnology at one of the colleges run by Vidya Pratisthan. He added ruefully that he will probably have to relocate to cities such as Bangalore, which will pay him good money but force him to move away from his ailing mother.
In 15 years of Congress-NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) rule, Pawar has had a free hand in the State, noted More. But there has been little rise in skilled jobs or industrial development.
Maharashtra was an early pioneer, with institutions such as Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and Haffkine Institute, but over the years it has lost its edge in biological sciences, More said.
More's team mate Anand Patil, who is pursuing engineering at a local college, said that even local residents of Baramati are disenchanted with local MLA and former Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. The region has seen development in terms of civic infrastructure and educational institutes but people have to look outside for jobs.
The exodus of trained professionals to other cities has not stopped, Patil said. Ajit Pawar is Sharad Pawar’s nephew.
Work and votes Patil said that in spite of the development work done by the Pawar family, it needn’t translate into votes in Baramati and other areas of Pune district. People are looking forward to the status quo getting broken and development picking up, he said.
Elections are just nine days away, but there is no buzz in the city and the surrounding rural areas. Large hoardings, banners and loud campaigning by zealous party workers are all missing. The city will witness a four-corner fight between the NCP, Congress, BJP and Shiv Sena. The NCP faces a tough contest in its traditional vote bank.
But dislodging Ajit Pawar, who has been the local MLA since 1991, will be an uphill task for the NCP’s rivals.
The BJP is expected to put up a tough fight against him, said political analyst MR Joshi.
(Some names has been changed to maintain anonymity.)
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