Bargarh, April 6: The slogan, “Shankh bajiba Odisha sara, agei neba bikasa dhara” (the sound of conch will fill the state, the flow of development will continue), scrawled across a huge conch-emblazoned billboard at Barpalli, the heart of this constituency.

And it is symbolic of the BJD’s desperation to foreground its development plank to wrest the seat from the Congress.

The attempt to hard-sell development, however, does not seem to be working at the moment with acres of non-irrigated land, poor health care and dust-laden roads presenting a contrasting picture. Ruling party leaders are quick to attribute this to the failure of the sitting Congress MP, Sanjay Bhoi, who is seeking a second term, to do his bit for the constituency, better known as the rice bowl of the state. But the man on the street is far from convinced. “He might have failed, but what was the state government doing all these years? How can they ask for votes in the name of development?” asks Saroj Das, a betel shop owner at Kushanpuri Chowk.

The general mood is sullen and with good reason. While more than half of Gaisilet and Bijepur blocks are yet to see assured irrigation, the Ranjhjor-Barpalli pipe water scheme is yet to become operational. “Funds were released two years ago, but the scheme is still hanging fire. This area badly needs water,” says Manoranjan Chand who, though, is a BJD man at heart.

The community health centre at Barpalli is struggling to keep itself afloat with 12 vacancies of staff nurses. It has to manage without a blood storage unit with K.C. Mahant, the man running the show, offering a silent prayer to the almighty every time there is an emergency. “So far, so good,” he offers weakly.

But more than him, it is the BJD candidate, Prabhas Singh, a complete greenhorn who gave up his job as the curator in charge of Odisha State Museum in Bhubaneswar, to take the political plunge and needs the help of almighty. Though a son of the soil, who hails from Bhatigaon near Barpalli, his name draws blank stares in large parts of the constituency made up of seven Assembly segments, of which five are being held by the Congress. “I think he is a physician, but never heard of him in these parts before,” said Dhrub Charan Meher, a businessman in Bargarh town.

Local BJD workers, though, dismiss the obscurity charge against their candidate making a brave attempt to project him as someone who kept in touch with the area even while he was in government service. “He was president of the Pacshim Odisha Agrani Sangthan, which has been working relentlessly to promote and preserve the culture of this region. He was also the secretary of Sambalpur University students’ union,” said Debraj Chinda at the party office in Bargarh.

But obscurity notwithstanding, Singh brings with him a clean slate, which the party considers crucial to its fortunes. “If our chief minister’s clean image has clicked with the electorate, his image, too, is bound to appeal to the people. He is no run of the mill politician,” said Chinda, who is convinced that the voters will ultimately plump in favour of this former government servant.

The other important factor that the party seems to be banking on here is the rising tide of resentment within Congress rank and file against sitting MP Sanjay Bhoi, who, the workers allege, has hardly ever visited the constituency in the past five years. What riles them even more is the fact that the leadership renominated Bhoi, ignoring the objections of the region’s four sitting MLAs, who might work against him. No wonder the posters of Bhoi, wherever they appear, don’t feature local party MLAs in sharp contrast to the banners and billboards of the ruling party candidate, who is seen in the company of local stalwarts such as finance minister Prasanna Acharya, who is contesting from Bijepur.

If posters and banners can be an indication of a candidate’s standing, BJP’s Subhash Chauhan, the Bajrang Dal convenor testing the political waters here for the first time, seems to be trailing the Congress and the BJD. A silent worker, he has been trudging miles through the dusty villages of the constituency with his faithful band of followers pinning his hopes on the Modi magic, which, though, is far from visible in these parts. His workers call him the dark horse in this race whose victor seems hard to predict at the moment.