Gauging the electoral pulse across the length and breadth of India

Business Standard reporters boarded trains in the first week of February to the four corners of the country, travelling non-AC sleeper class, to gauge the national mood

As the country is gripped by election fever, in what promises to be a landmark vote, Business Standard reporters boarded trains in the first week of February to the four corners of the country - travelling non-AC sleeper class from Amritsar to Howrah, Muzaffarnagar to Surat, Delhi to Bangalore, and Dibrugarh to Kanyakumari - to gauge the national mood.

What emerged after travelling with the masses was the absence of a single narrative.

But, even so, some things stood out.

Among all national leaders, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was the most popular. He has more than an edge over Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi. In the BJP-ruled states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, there was not even a distant second to match Modi's popularity.

Yet, the road to Delhi is not that smooth for the BJP. Outside the traditionally BJP-ruled states, Modi's popularity was countered, not by the Congress vice-president or Aam Aadmi Party's Arvind Kejriwal but by state-level leaders, belonging to the non-Congress, non-BJP parties.

In Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati's popularity matched Modi's. She was preferred over Akhilesh Yadav's government, for which there was unanimous criticism. In Bengal, the Trinamool Congress seemed far ahead of any of its rivals. In Andhra, Jaganmohan Reddy seemed set for a stunning debut, even as there was a revival of the Telugu Desam Party. In Punjab, there seemed hope for the Congress, as there was some discontent over the taxation policies of the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government. Finally, in Bihar, there was strong anti-incumbency against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar but there was also appreciation for his development work.

Less surprisingly, the Congress appeared much less popular than five years ago. It was criticised for its failure to check rising prices and corruption, and halt the fall in standards of living. The good news for the Congress was its popularity in some states. In the Northeast (except Assam), it emerged the most popular national party while its government in Kerala received praise.

Lastly, it appeared that the train of Kejriwal is stuck in Delhi. Even as it is now known all over the country, the AAP is perceived as the new-kid-on-the-block kind of party. More, there were few who praised its governance style in the capital.