Tasgaon (Sangli): It is that time of the year when tractor trolleys , crammed with workers awkwardly seated near stacks of clothes, utensils, rudimentary tents, wood, and knick-knacks, trundle on major roads in western Maharashtra districts. These sugar cane cutters , many of whom even traverse up to 1,200 km for greener pastures in neighbouring Karnataka and Telangana, carefully balance them as the vehicles make their way to the destinations of their annual sojourn. This is a common sight every crushing season in the sugar cane belt (as western Maharashtra is known in common parlance) except it clashes with the assembly election voting date this time.
That means more than 10 lakh workers from districts such as Nandurbar, Dhule, Beed, Parbhani and Jalgaon are likely to miss exercising their electoral right. For those unaware, a ministerial committee had decided much before the poll announcement that the crushing will begin on Nov 15 in Maharashtra. Now, this unprecedented situation has prompted the state govt to urge the Election Commission of India (ECI) to postpone the cane cutting schedule by 10 days.
It is pertinent to note that Maharashtra Association of Sugarcane Cutters and Transport Workers had already approached the Aurangabad bench of Bombay high court seeking ECI either arrange for transporting workers to their residences on polling day - Nov 20 - or allow them to vote in booths near their workplace. The court on Wednesday put off the hearing after four weeks. One .
