Rajasthan Assembly Elections: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda, along with party leaders, on Thursday released the party's 'Sankalp Patra' (manifesto) for the upcoming Assembly elections in Rajasthan. The state is going to the polls on November 25.
Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, state party chief CP Joshi, former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and other party leaders were present at the event.
The BJP refers to its manifesto as "Sankalp Patra," and for Rajasthan, it is named 'Aapno Agrani Rajasthan Sankalp Patra.'
What BJP promises to people of Rajasthan?
- Women will be provided free education from KG to PG.
- A compensation policy will be implemented to provide fair compensation for the auctioned land of farmers in the state.
- The amount for Matru Vandana will be increased from Rs 4,000 to Rs 8,000.
- Under the Lakhpati Didi scheme, skill training will be provided to more than 6 lakh rural women.
- Under the PM Ujjwala Yojana, women from all poor families will be provided with a gas cylinder for Rs 450.
- In the next 5 years, 2.5 lakh unemployed people will be given jobs in the state.
- Economically weaker students will be provided with annual assistance of Rs 1200 for uniforms and more.
- Rajasthan Institute of Technology and Medical Colleges will be opened in each division, following the model of AIIMS and IIT.
- Wheat produce will be purchased at Rs 2,700 per quintal, and a bonus will be given on MSP.
- The Ladli Protsahan Yojana will be launched, under which a bond of Rs 2 lakh will be given for every girl's birth.
- Under the Chief Minister's Free Scooty Scheme, scooters will be given to meritorious female students who pass 12th grade.
- Special Investigation Team will be formed to probe paper leaks, and other scams in Rajasthan.
- Women police stations will be opened in every district, with a women's desk in each police station. Anti-Romeo squads will be formed in all major cities.
- To promote tourism, tourism skill courses will be created to train five lakh youth and provide employment and self-employment opportunities.
JP Nadda on manifesto
During the release of the manifesto, Nadda criticised the Congress party's last five years in power. Highlighting the central schemes, he mentioned that the BJP has been actively working to support farmers through these initiatives.
Nadda also brought attention to the appointment letters issued by the Central Government, stating that six lakh government jobs have been provided to the youth in seven months.
Nadda further said the manifesto or vision document for the other parties is just a formality, but for BJP it is a roadmap for development. "I would like to say that for other parties, the manifesto is just a formality. But for the BJP, it's a roadmap for development. So this 'Sankalp Patra' is not just words written on the page, but we are committed to fulfilling these sentences. Our history is the proof that we did whatever we said," he said.
The BJP chief said, "I want to clear out the differences between the BJP and Congress... The Congress Party became known for five things in five years. These are corruption, the disrespect of women, and neglected farmers. This is the state where the rate of electricity is highest and petrol and diesel have the highest VAT. The number of paper leaks that happened here has broken records."
Notably, BJP’s Sankalp Patra is based on the suggestions of more than one crore people through the party’s outreach programmes like “Akansha Peti”, e-mails and social media platforms, claimed Meghwal, who is the convener of the party’s manifesto committee.
Here's Congress' poll guarantees
- Gruha Laxmi Guarantee: The Congress government will provide an annual honorarium of Rs 10,000 to the women heads of the family. The guarantee aims to empower women and give them financial independence and an opportunity to take better care of their children.
- Godhan Guarantee: The Congress government will provide animal dung for Rs 2 per kg from cattle owners to produce biogas. This scheme is already being implemented in Chhattisgarh and it will be implemented in Rajasthan.
- Free Laptop Guarantee: The Congress government will give free laptop/tablets to students studying in the first year of government colleges. The guarantee aims to provide equal opportunity to children studying in government colleges and put them at par with the affluent once studying in private colleges.
- Cheeranjeevi Aapda Bima Guarantee: The Congress government will provide Rs 15 lakh insurance for Cheeranjeevi families if they suffer any loss due to any natural calamity (flood, lighting, drought or storms). The Congress government is already providing Cheeranjeevi Accidental insurance for Rs 10 lakh and Rs 25 lakh Cheeranjeevi Health insurance. After the launch of this scheme, nearly 80% will get a total insurance cover of Rs 50 lakh.
- Free English Medium Education Guarantee: The Congress government will provide free education in English medium to the students studying at the Mahatma Gandhi English Schools. The Guarantee aims to cater to the wishes of parents who want their wards to learn English and increase their chances of employability in the globalized/modern world.
- Gas Subsidy Guarantee: The Congress government will provide subsidized gas cylinders at Rs 500 each to more than 1 crore families in the state. The guarantee aims to eliminate use of wood/fossil fuels for cooking and ensure last-mile delivery of gas cylinders to every family in the state.
- OPS Guarantee: Old pension scheme to be re-introduced ensuring regular source of income for government employees after retirement.
What happened in the 2018 elections?
The 200-member Rajasthan Assembly is scheduled for elections on November 25, and the counting of votes will be on December 3.
In 2018, Congress won 100 seats in the 2018 Assembly polls. BJP followed at 73 seats while BSP garnered 6 seats. Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) gathered 3 seats with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP) mustered 2 seats each. Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) managed to grab just one seat while there were 13 independent candidates in the 2018 Assembly Elections.
