ELURU: The "weaker sex'' is no weak in West Godavari district. The destiny of political parties hinges on the mood of women voters in the municipal elections, thanks to their numerical strength.

"Women's dominance" can be observed in all the seven municipal towns and even the Eluru Municipal Corporation. Women voters are more by 10,500 when compared to their male counterparts out of the total of 4.87 lakh urban voters in the district.

Their strength

As per the latest census, municipality-wise male-female voter strength is as follows: 68,983 women as against 67,385 men in Eluru; 34,089 women as against 32,739 men in Tadepalligudem; 25,835 women as against 24,319 men in Tanuku; 16,308 women as against 14,844 men in Nidadavole; 15,017 women as against 13,909 men in Kovvuru. 48,474 women as against 47,090 men in Bhimavaram; 20,062 women as against 19,166 men in Palacole; 20,036 women as against 18,818 men in Palacole. Five female candidates are in the race for the chairperson post in the five municipalities reserved for women--Narsapur, Bhimavaram and Kovvuru, Palacole and Nidadavole, besides another woman industrialist, Vanka Rajakumari, in Tanuku (general).

Family support

The support enjoyed by women candidates either from their spouses or from the other male family members seemingly leads the all-pervasive gender bias to be conspicuously absent from the election in these municipalities. Grandhi Venkataratnamma, a chairperson candidate of the Congress in Bhimavaram, receives strong support from his MLA son, Srinivas. Similarly, her TDP counterpart in Narsapur, Kothapalli Sailaja, and the Congress counterpart in Tanuku, Vanka Rajakumari, enjoy full backing from their spouses.

The numerical strength of women hardly helps their nagging problems. Issues like toilets, drinking water and house sites have caught the attention of major political parties during the elections, according to G. Vijaya, president of the All-India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA), district unit.

Meanwhile, both the ruling Congress and the TDP boast of enjoying the backing of women with the "strength'' of their contribution to women's empowerment through different schemes.

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