The Basavaraj Bommai government in Karnataka is looking at the flagship 'Vidya Niddhi scheme', providing scholarships to children of farmers, to be its winning election card for consolidating the BJP's rural base in the state.
Ahead of the coming assembly polls, the welfare scheme which has already covered over 10 lakh children of rural farmers with scholarship at a cost of Rs 464 crores,has now also been extended by the Chief minister to the children of landless farm labourers in the state.
According to the state government, a pilot project is underway in Bagalkot, Haveri and Shivamogga to "identify " children of landless labourers as the 2011 Census does not provide details.
The BJP trusts that scheme which has been extended to farm labourers and weavers may “blunt” Congress and JD (S) bids to raise rural planks to counter the BJP in the assembly polls and give it a wide edge in the electoral battle against the Congress and JD (S), the two rivals with good rural base.
According to BJP leaders, the scheme targeted at the ‘poorest of poor’ may sway voters to the party in large part of rural Karnataka cutting across their caste identities.