The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has sought to build up on a host of its existing welfare schemes and development projects rather than making a string of fresh announcements in its poll manifesto released here on Wednesday.
Beginning with its much publicised distribution of rice to the poor families at Rs 2 per kg earlier, the party now promises to distribute the same at Rs 1 per kg. On the support price for paddy, there is an apparent bid to counter the Opposition move which promises Rs 2,000 per quintal in its manifesto to BJP’s promise of Rs 2,100 per quintal besides a bonus of Rs 300 per quintal annually. The party’s manifesto now promises an ‘interest free’ loan to farmers besides a target of achieving 100 per cent insurance for farm labourers. The other populist measure ostensibly to woo a large segment of young voters is to provide laptops and tablets to all students entering colleges now.
This apart, while promising 3 per cent loans for the educated unemployed, the party promises to double the quantum of pension paid to the pensioners under ‘Nirashrit Pension Yojana.’ The Smart Card scheme for availing medical services which covered expenses to the limit of Rs 30,000 had been hiked to Rs 50,000 in the manifesto. The party promises to provide free electricity to irrigation pumps of farmers upto 5 horse power (HP) with plans to launch a ‘Crop Insurance Guarantee Scheme’ for the farmers.
The manifesto promises to make a special initiative for getting the status of ‘Agricultural Capital’ in the 12th Five Year plan. The party promises to significantly enhance milk production during the next five years to achieve its target of becoming a ‘milk surplus’ State. This apart, the party plans to come out with a policy on evaluation of crop damage for quick disbursal of compensation. It also plans to form a ‘State land Reforms Policy’ on the lines of ‘National land Reforms Policy’.
With a clear focus on keeping the rural populace within the party fold, it promises to free ‘Haat Bazsars’ of ‘Pasra tax’ (Squatter Tax) and even free such bazars from the ‘Contractor system’. The party had promised to connect the roads of all the villages to pucca roads with construction of a community building in each village.
On the Higher Education front, the BJP promises to provide free education to girls till the graduation level. This apart, the party promises to provide loans at the rate of 3 per cent interest to educated unemployed women to start an industry or trade. Targetting households, the party promises to start ‘Noni Surakhsha Yojana’ (ladli laxmi Yojana) on which a one-time amount would be deposited by the Government as soon as a girl child is born and she would receive Rs 1 lakh on attaining the age of 18 years.
The party promises to commence ‘direct recruitment’ for all Government departments to fill up the vacant positions. This apart, it also promises to bring a law to get jobs in the private sector companies and industrial units for 90 per cent of the locals. The party promises to provide facilities for developing an ‘Information Technology’ (IT) Hub in Chhattisgarh.
On the Culture and Tourism front, the party intends to form a ‘Chhattisgarh Film Development Corporation’ besides ‘Chhattisgarhi lok Kala Academy’. It also plans to prepare a Master Plan for development of all tourist places in the State. The party also intends to form a State-level “Commerce & Industry Board’ for the redressal of problems of the trade and industry.
In another populist move, it intends to re-determine property tax and taxes levied under ‘Nal Jal Yojana’. On the infrastructure front, the party intends to launch the ‘Metro Rail and Mono Rail’ projects beginning with Raipur to Rajnandgaon and Raipur to Bilaspur in the first phase. This apart, the party intends to install CCTV cameras in all the areas under the jurisdiction of municipal corporations.