As counting started for the Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat election, Sunil Shah, president of Dadar Vyapari Sangh, was travelling from Mumbai to Gujarat. “It was clear that the mandate was swinging in BJP’s favour and my journey was miles of smiles,” said Shah. The win, Shah said, is important “as traders are going to benefit. Look at the flow of investments in Gujarat. I have seen ground reality improve. Earlier, it took 45 minutes to go from Bhachau to Kharoi, today that has been cut to hardly 20 minutes.” He said that the infra proved that the talk about development is not just all talk as critics claim. “See the celebratory mood on the much- improved roads,” he stressed.

Action-oriented

Mumbai businessman Devang Vora said he was “not surprised by the record win in Gujarat. We have drone, lights, pyrotechnic shows at the Sabarmati riverfront. Of course, things are not going to be 100 per cent perfect, there is always room for improvement but people are realising that there are efforts being made. The Statue of Unity has resulted in a tourism boom, and an entire ecosystem is now built around the site with villagers benefitting with jobs.”