ALWAR: Jitendra Saini stares at the gleaming solar panels on his farm in Rajasthan, paid in large part by the ruling Congress party, as he considers who will get his vote in India’s election. “We will be voting for Modi because he knows what real development is,” said Saini, 30, as he sat on the porch of his new two-storey home.

Saini’s income has increased five-fold in the last three years thanks to the heavily subsidised panels which power a drip irrigation system that waters rows of lush vegetables in giant hothouses.

But Saini’s declaration of support for the main opposition candidate Narendra Modi is an indicator of how popularity for Congress is ebbing away even in its rural heartland, despite its raft of pro-farmer policies during a decade in power.

On Wednesday, Congress released its manifesto for the national election that starts on April 7, pledging to pull millions more out of poverty, in a last ditch bid to win over voters.

“The future of India is the poor people of India... they are sitting in the villages, they are sitting in the small towns and these are the people that the Congress party works for,” Congress front man Rahul Gandhi said.

Saini’s 20-hectare farm, which also grows wheat and mustard seeds, has been in the family for generations. But as he looks to the future, Saini said his family needs opportunities, not welfare programme.

“I believe that if the entire country progresses, then my family will automatically benefit and will be happy. So the country should develop first,” he said of his reasons for supporting Modi who heads the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Since it was first elected in 2004, the Congress-led government has poured billions of dollars annually into rural India, home to 70 per cent of the country’s poor, in guaranteed employment, cheap food, road-building and other schemes.

In 2010-2011, the government spent $18 billion alone on subsidies to help farmers produce their crops, mainly cheap fertiliser, economic research group McKinsey Global Institute said.The schemes have helped boost incomes and consumer spending in India’s nearly 600,000 villages and on farms, where 47 per cent of the 485 million-strong workforce toils.

But polls show Congress, led by Rahul and his mother Sonia Gandhi, headed for a disastrous defeat at the elections which will produce a result in mid May.

Modi, a hard-line Hindu nationalist, is gaining popularity on a campaign of reviving India’s battered economy by attracting investment, accelerating development and creating jobs.

At state polls in December, the BJP toppled Congress from power in Rajasthan and won in two other largely rural states.

“No rural programmes are actually going to help Congress remain popular in rural areas this time around,” said Sanjay Kumar, director of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies.

“This myth about the BJP not being popular in rural areas might be broken at this election.”A string of corruption scandals embroiling Congress has angered mainly urban voters, but failure to curb crippling inflation that has hiked basic food prices is a major issue for rural ones.

Kumar said people also view Modi, chief minister of western Gujarat state, as a strong leader who can provide them with opportunities as they aspire for better lives for their families.“Overall, they certainly think things will improve under Modi, even though they have no details about his plans for increasing economic development.” Supporters say Modi is an efficient and incorruptible governor of Gujarat, whose pro-business style can be rolled out across India. Economic growth in Gujarat averaged 10.13 per cent between 2005 and 2012, official data shows.

But critics say the economic gains have been uneven and poverty still persists, particularly among minorities.

In the town of Alwar, a short drive from the Saini farm and with a population of 314,000, new motorbike and tractor showrooms have sprung up.

“Modi rocks,” said Harsh Dhingra, head of a Honda bike dealership whose sales have taken off since opening 12 months ago.

“Government [welfare] schemes have been spoiling this country not making it more productive. You have to give people skills, not handouts.” The mood is more subdued at Alwar’s market where farmers have come in the hope of earning a good price for their wheat, mustard seed and other crops.

Many Muslims fear Modi’s rise because he is accused of complicity during religious riots in 2002 in Gujarat while he was chief minister that left more than 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, dead.

“I’m worried that if they form a government, there will be a lot of communal tension and unrest,” said Moj Khan.

But in a reminder of the gruelling poverty still facing millions of farmers of differing castes, communities and religions, Islam Khan, 48, said he will vote for Modi. Khan pointed to poor power and water supplies and bad roads as reasons.

Soaring food costs meant his three children sometimes went to bed hungry, he added softly, as farmers unloaded sacks of crops from tractors.

“All I want for my family is to see them get food and get their medicines on time,” he said.—AFP