Bhubaneswar, Feb. 25 -- Will the women vote bank in Odisha, said to be the core strength of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), stand divided in the incoming elections?

The ruling party is making an all-out effort to keep women SHG members in good humours by announcing financial assistance for uniforms while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to distribute Shakti Samman Patra with signatures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to SHG members and community staff from March 7.

The BJP's new political gambit has pushed the BJD on the back foot.

BJP workers will hand out Shakti Samman Patra to SHG presidents, secretaries, MBKs, CTPs, Bankmitras, community staff, Pranimitra, assistant cook, Anganwadi workers and ASHAs, even as the party...