FEROZEPUR: The border parliamentary constituency of Ferozepur has largely remained a citadel of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) as the party has won nine out of the 17 elections held so far, including the last five consecutive contests. For the Congress the situation is worse than it appears, as it has not tasted victory in the last eight elections. The constituency has kept it waiting for the last 35 years.It was in 1984 that Congress’s Gurdial Singh had won the seat for the grand old party.There is, however, a ray of hope for the party, as in the 2017 state assembly elections, the Congress registered victories in six out of nine assembly segments falling under Ferozepur parliamentary constituency. In addition, sitting MP Sher Singh Ghubaya who had won last two elections in 2009 and 2014 on SAD has now strained relations with the party and making efforts for Congress ticket. His son Davinder Ghubaya has already won from Fazilka assembly seat on a Congress ticket.Apart from giving Mayawati-led BSP an MP twice, Ferozepur also has distinction of being only constituency in the entire Malwa region where saffron party BJP has some presence. In the 2017 state assembly elections, BJP’s Arun Narang had defeated the now Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar from Abohar segment that falls in Ferozeopur.By the virtue of being a border constituency, voters here have lots of unresolved issues. Especially the farmers having fields near zero line. They have to face lots of hardships in tilling their fields and have to reach the fields after crossing the border gates under strict vigil of the Border Security Force. Many of the villages in Ferozepur and Fazilka districts have their water sources contaminated and instances of cancer and skin diseases are high. In the absence affordable quality treatment, patients have been waiting for the satellite centre of PGIMER to come up.Residents of border area have been demanding opening of the Hussainiwala border post for trade but as relationship with Pakistan has remained rocky there has hardly been a serious discussion on the issue. The demand was also put forward before Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Hussaniwala to pay tributes to martyrs Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev on March 23, 2015, but to no avail. Residents here believe that if the border was opened for trade, it would go a long way in reviving the economy of the area.Fazilka areas is known for cotton and citrus fruit production. The kinnow growers had to face lots of problems due to water logging in Abohar area but again there has been no lasting solution in sight.

Stay updated with all the Amritsar Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.