The backward class community in Dubbaka plays a pivotal role, constituting 50 percent of the constituency's 1,94,664 voters.
Published Nov 15, 2023 | 1:00 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 15, 2023 | 1:00 PM
About 10,000 residents of Dubbaka are directly involved in the handloom industry, while another 20,000 are engaged in the beedi industry. (Bhaskar Basava/South First)
With the Telangana Assembly elections 2023 just days away, South First is bringing you ground reports from key constituencies. This series brings you voices from the ground, the mood of the voters, and issues that matter — as well as those that don’t.
Dubbaka, a constituency located some 100 km from Hyderabad, once took centrestage in a political episode that sent shockwaves through the ruling BRS party. This constituency is one of two Assembly segments in Telangana that the BJP won in a by-poll in 2020.
As the Telangana Assembly elections draw near, questions arise: Will the BJP shine again here? Can the BRS regain its ground, or will the Congress have a stroke of luck?
South First visited Dubbaka for a ground report in an attempt to decode the ground reality on electoral issues and explore the stances of the various contenders.
When you delve into the heart of Dubbaka, you don’t find much religious or communal polarisation, as observed in Goshamahal, another seat represented by the BJP.
However, a strong divide exists among communities, to the extent that they even refuse to share government-constructed group 2 BHK houses if there is the presence of other communities.
Turning to the youth, amidst rising unemployment, they find themselves divided among parties, often working for political leaders.
Notably, the Backward Classes (BC) community in Dubbaka plays a pivotal role, constituting 50 percent of the constituency’s voters (1,94,664). Among them, 10,000 are directly involved in the handloom industry, while another 20,000 are engaged in the beedi industry.
Additionally, nearly 70 percent of the constituency’s women, representing nearly one lakh votes, work as beedi rollers from their homes.
Taking inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi and practising century-old traditional handloom weaving techniques passed down through the generations, the BC communities of Padmashali and Neelakanta once made Dubbaka well-known for its weaving quality.
Unfortunately, the town has now ceased to teach future generations about the handloom industry, fearing hunger as it sinks with no support from either the Union or state government.
With no other alternative and a love for weaving, only a few hundred people now practice the art under the aegis of the Handloom Society in Dubbaka town. According to local weavers, as many as 100-150 weavers have died by suicide in this town since 2014.
A handloom weaver in the Dubbaka constituency. (Bhaskar Basava/South First)
Regarding the 2020 by-poll promise of BJP MLA Raghunandan Rao to the weavers, offering ₹3,000 per month as pension, it appears to be a distant mirage.
Meanwhile, the Telangana state government has halted the purchase of handloom stocks for the past two months, leaving the handloom industry in Dubbaka in dire straits.
A handloom weaver, Gavvala Sujatha, tells South First, “We haven’t received a salary for the past two months (₹200 per day) and also, the weavers’ pension of ₹2,000.”
She chokes up when she adds, “The government is not buying material from us, nor is the public at the stalls. Our society took the stock to Hyderabad a few days ago for a sale exhibition and not even a towel was sold.”
Another handloom weaver, Boda Rukumbhai, says, “We earn ₹23 per hour, making ₹200 per day, and ₹6,000 per month. Diwali has come, but not our salaries. How are we supposed to celebrate the festival? Also, half of the pension of ₹2,000 goes to medical expenses. What else do we have left?”
Image of woman weaving in the Dubbaka handloom sector.
Handloom weaver Bhooma Lingam adds, “It takes us between an hour and two hours to weave one towel, which costs ₹40. However, for the past three hours, I haven’t been able to weave, as thoughts of my and my family’s survival are weighing heavily on my mind. I have to make two bedsheets per day, each costing around ₹90, but I haven’t even touched them. I’ve only managed to complete work worth ₹150 over the past two days, and I’m unsure if I will even receive payment for it.”
“We all depend on clothing and food, but we have been forgotten by the government. The doralu (referring to the landlords) are becoming richer and richer, while we (the poor) are struggling to eat,” he says with much angst.
The beedi workers directly engaged in this constituency are around 30,000, while almost 70,000 women work part-time. They are present everywhere in the town and surrounding villages.
With low wages and health problems, the workers in this constituency are struggling to garner attention to their problems, despite their substantial number of votes.
Most of the women go to the beedi factory, bringing leaves home. They submit the rolled beedis for which they are paid just 2 paise per stick after PF deductions and agent commissions.
A women rolling beedi in Dubbaka. (Bhaskar Basava/South First)
The BJP MLA’s by-poll electoral promise of ₹3,000 as pension to the workers is yet to be seen — another broken promise.
Meanwhile, the state government has not been able to provide loans to the beedi workers, who are excluded from getting any from corporate banks and are now turning to private money lenders.
A women beedi labourer tells with South First, “Most women in this constituency have undergone surgeries and operations, making it difficult for them to sit and work for a long time. We make around 1,000 beedis in a day and earn ₹200 after all deductions. Struggling with the inflation in essential commodities, we find it challenging to run our households.”
“We don’t have anything political; we respect all the parties. No one has come to listen to our problems,” she adds.
A man packing the beedis in Dubbaka. (Bhaskar Basava/South First)
A beedi worker, on the condition of anonymity, states, “Despite the ESI being deducted from our earnings, we don’t have any ESI hospital or dispensaries in Dubbaka. We have to travel to Siddipet, which is 25 km away. The doctors deny us admission, stating that these are cards from the undivided district, and then we have to travel to Nizamabad, which is 100 km away.”
“We want a budget to be mentioned for the beedi workers since the tax is being levied by the Union government, and loans can be sanctioned and hospitals can be built for us. Also, despite the central guidelines of minimum wage payment, KCR is not implementing this. We would request the chief minister to do something for our betterment,” he adds.
While travelling in a auto in Chintamadaka. (Bhaskar Basava/South First)
The people of the Dubbaka constituency feel that it is underdeveloped compared to other constituencies represented by the ruling BRS in the region.
The leaders of the two parties, BRS and BJP, are engaged in a verbal spat over funds and development statistics, with the people of the constituency closely looking on the ground.
“While the highway is under construction, the roads connecting to the villages face issues with potholes. Earlier, buses used to come 4-5 times to the village junction, but now, only one bus comes,” says a Muslim woman whom we met when travelling by auto.
Her own house stands divided when it comes to which political party to support — her husband supports the Congress, while her son supports the ruling BRS.
There is also a strong local opinion about the development and unemployment in the constituency.
A beedi worker living in bad conditions and wishing for a 2 BHK, as promised by the government. (Bhaskar Basava/South First)
“Since there is an Opposition party MLA, development is progressing slowly. The funds are not being released to the constituency. Many double bedrooms are yet to be completed and only a few houses have been handed over to the beneficiaries,” states a local carpenter.
“The double-bedroom houses are given to the rich. We are living in a house where we can’t sleep or stay when it rains. Not just us, many from the constituency face the same fate. There are also no new jobs provided in the constituency, and no new factories or companies have come up here either,” a local woman shares.
Dubbaka Assembly constituency. (Click on the image to enlarge)
Dubbaka, a constituency in the Siddipet district, was won by the two-time BRS MLA Solipeta Ramalinga Reddy in the 2018 Assembly polls. However, after his demise due to heart attack in 2020, a bypoll was triggered, leading to the BJP’s victory by a margin of just 1,079 votes.
Since 2014, the constituency has consistently registered a higher percentage turnout than the state average, with the recent by-polls reaching 83.5 percent, compared to the state’s 79.7 percent.
In the 253 polling stations across the constituency, there is a higher number of female voters, totaling 99,359, than male voters at 95,305, adding up to 1,94,664. The Backward Class (BC) vote bank holds significant importance in this constituency.
This time around, BRS MP Kotha Prabhakar Reddy and incumbent BJP MLA M Raghunandan Rao are set for a high-profile battle, with the Congress candidate Cheruku Srinivas Reddy trying his luck for a second time. The BRS MP was recently attacked by a Congress supporter and seriously injured.
Throughout the constituency, the BJP MLA is framing the narrative of under-development due to the forced halting of funds intended for Dubbaka’s development. This has been attributed to the BRS top leader and minister, T Harish Rao, who hails from the same district.
On the other side, BRS MP, currently contesting as an MLA, is attempting to shift blame onto the BJP MLA for the current state of affairs.
It will be interesting to see whether the constituency’s voters, especially the beedi workers and handloom weavers, will re-elect the BJP or choose the BRS, potentially wresting one of the three BJP seats, or if the Congress will taste victory.
