Problem of plenty: One Ahmedabad ward elects 5 MLAs, 4 MPs! | India News
The ward is divided into multiple assembly and parliamentary constituencies, so voters are confused about which door to knock to have their grievances redressed.
Parts of Vejalpur, Daskroi, Danilimda, Vatva, and Maninagar assembly constituencies jut into Lambha. Moreover, swaths of Kheda, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad West, and Ahmedabad East Lok Sabha constituencies fall in Lambha.
Kalu Bharwad, an independent Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) councillor from Lambha, said his is the only ward in the city divided among these many assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies. “These divisions cause a lot of trouble to citizens as they don’t know which MLA or MP to approach when they have a problem,” Bharwad said. He added that the jumble of lines of authority deprives people of the benefits of government schemes and MLA and MP grants, as smaller areas usually do not get priority.
Rahul Parmar, 24, a resident of Jyotinagar Society in Lambha, said: “Our ward was roughly 58 sq km when it was brought within the AMC jurisdiction in 2007. But that year, a boundary delimitation ahead of the assembly election reduced its area to 44 sq km.” Parmar added: “For a decade, basic amenities including roads, sewers, and water networks have not been laid properly in the ward.” He went on to say: “Roads don’t get repaired regularly. We still do not have a complete sewer network, since a large portion of the ward is an industrial zone.”
Ghanshyamsinh Parmar, the Congress president of Lambha ward, said: “Lambha is the only ward which is overrepresented by politicians, but in terms of civic facilities we have nothing in place.” He added: “Shahwadi, Ranipur, and Narol villages were initially merged into Isanpur in 1989 but have been in Lambha ward since 2010. These new areas do not have proper sewer network, water supply, or roads. Where do local residents go for redress?”
The problem appears to be a tangle of jurisdictions. For example, Gyaspur in Lambha lies within the Vejalpur assembly seat. Twenty-two Lambha polling stations, including Indira Nagar sections 1 and 2 and Lakshmipura Gam, come under the Daskroi assembly seat. More befuddling, the Daskroi assembly seat areas are covered by the Kheda Lok Sabha constituency.
Five polling stations — including Saijpur, Piplaj, and Ganeshnagar — are part of the Danilimda assembly constituency.
A major part of Lambha, with 52 polling stations, is under the Maninagar assembly seat. Perplexingly for the voters, Ahmedabad West Lok Sabha constituency spans Danilimda and Maninagar.
