Water a priority for Karnataka voters: reveals a survey
Bengaluru: Improving the quality and supply of water in the state is one of the most important issues for voters in poll-bound Karnataka, a survey released on Saturday said.
The Karnataka Voter Survey 2018 that was released by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Om Prakash Rawat here stressed this point.
Several districts of Karnataka have been facing water crisis, with the state's north-western drought-prone districts of Bagalkot, Belagavi, Dharwad and Gadag lacking water even for drinking needs.
Better electricity supply, improved roads and environment protection were among the other most important issues for voters in the urban areas.
Voters in rural parts, meanwhile, stressed more on better schools, roads and an increase in the number of public health centres.
The most important factor for the electors to cast their vote was found to be the candidate, followed by the party and then the party's Chief Ministerial candidate.
About 42 per cent of the voters surveyed said they would vote for a particular political party based on their Chief Ministerial candidate, with 67 per cent of the total number of people surveyed agreeing that the candidate's party was a reason to cast vote for him/her.
According to the report, nearly 36 per cent of the voters considered the candidate's religion and caste important.
The survey's urban participants believed that the current government performed poorly on the issues of improving public facilities, eradicating corruption and job training.
Only 31 per cent of the people surveyed were happy with the state government's much-touted Indira Canteens, which provide food for the poor at subsidised rates.
About 79 per cent of the people had reported that they were happy with the state government's subsidised food scheme, "Anna Bhagya".
The Congress-led state government was given a score of 7.09 on 10 for its overall performance in the five years since 2013, as per the survey.
"The voters' perceptions highlight the need for awareness on the criminal, financial and other background of the candidates as well as transparency and accountability of political parties. Only then can a voter make an informed choice," asserted the survey.
Issues related to terrorism were among the least of the priorities for urban participants, the survey noted.
The survey was conducted by the New Delhi-based Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an organisation working for electoral reforms, and Daksh, a Bengaluru-based civil society body.
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7 killed after bus overturns in Jharkhand's Hazaribag
Hazaribag (Jharkhand), Nov 21: At least seven people were killed and several others injured on Thursday, after a Patna-bound bus overturned in Jharkhand's Hazaribag district, police said.
The accident occurred near Gorhar Police Station area, around 50 km from the district headquarters, as the bus turned turtle while negotiating a sharp bend, a senior officer said.
Hazaribag SP Arvind Kumar Singh told PTI seven persons were killed, while some suffered serious injuries.
There were around 50 passengers in the bus, which was on way to Patna from Kolkata, another officer said.
Motichand Prasad, a passenger, said his wife Rajkumari Prasad was killed in the accident.
"We were asleep when the accident occurred in the morning. We boarded the bus in Kolkata on Wednesday for Bihar," Prasad, a resident of Bihar's Gopalganj, said.
Another passenger from Bihar Sharif, Ganesh Kumar, said the incident took place around 6 am.
"As the driver tried to negotiate a sharp bend, he lost control over the bus and the vehicle overturned," Kumar said.
A police officer present on the spot said around 10 injured people were in critical condition.
Sub-divisional Police Officer (SPDO), Barhi, Ajit Kumar, said only three bodies could be identified so far – Rajkumari Prasad (55), Niti Samanta (25) and Ejaz Ahmed (40).
“Four other bodies are kept at the morgue of Sheikh Bhikhari Medical College and Hospital (SBMCH) at Hazaribag for identification,” he said.
Three critically injured persons were referred to Ranchi’s RIMS, while the others were being treated at SBMCH.
In a separate incident under the same police station area, two youths were crushed to death by a bus coming from behind.
The deceased were identified as Amit Kumar and Pappu Kumar, who were on a motorcycle when the bus struck the vehicle, an officer said.
