Ahmedabad, December 5: The Congress party on Monday released its manifesto for the upcoming Gujarat assembly polls which are to be held in two phases i.e on 9 December and 14 December this year. The 60 page “People’s Manifesto—2017” of Congress kept a special focus on youth, agriculture and Patel quota etc.
Notably, the Congress is desperate to make comeback in Gujarat, which is been ruled by BJP since over 20 years and therefore has tried to attract voters of each and every section of society through its “People’s Manifesto—2017”. The manifesto was released at a press conference in Ahmedabad by state Congress election in-charge Ashok Gehlot and Congress unit president Bharatsinh Solanki.
The manifesto covers from farm loan waiver to slashing of power tariffs to a Rs 32,000 crore outlay for 2.5 million unemployed youth and free housing for single women to free laptops and regulation of education fees etc.
Salient features of the manifesto released by Congress for Gujarat are as follows:
- To fill vacant government positions and cancellation of outsourcing of jobs as well as contract and fixed salary systems.
- To set up an Economically Backward Classes Commission (EBCS) for educational and economic development.
- Farmers to get 16-hour power supply and cancellation of amended Land Acquisition Act.
- To award ownership of LIG (Low Income Group) houses to women.
- Also to provide unemployment allowance for educated youth, slashing prices of both petrol and diesel by Rs. 10 per litre.
- Equal opportunity and equal empowerment of all citizens is the fundamental policy of Congress party.
- Without affecting/reducing/making any change in the present 49 percent reservation of the backward communities, Congress to introduce a bill in the Assembly at the earliest under Article 46 of the Constitution and keeping in view the provisions of the Article 31 (C).
- Under the bill, weaker communities who have not received any benefits of the reservation will be given equal opportunity for education and economic development and conferred all rights given to OBCs under this specific category.
- The Congress in manifesto also promised to consult various stakeholders and will appoint a commission to identify the communities to be included in the "special category".
- The party will also earmark development packages for areas dominated by OBCs and also establish 'Vishwakarma Foundation' for providing 100 percent finance for self-employment of artisans and OBC youths.
- Youths to get 250-500 sq metre plots at competitive rates and provided loans up to Rs. 5 lakh at 5 percent interest for setting up of an industry.
- To set up 'Swami Vivekanand Education Foundation with an aim to provide freeship and scholarship for students from the poor and middle-class families for their education from pre-primary level to PhD.
- To convert self-financed courses in government and aided institutions into grant-in-aid courses, thus reducing the fee burden by 80 percent.
- For girl students, 100 percent free education to be provided from primary to higher education, whereas families availing the Centre's Ujjwala gas connection will also be provided kerosene.
- To introduce 'Sardar Patel Universal Healthcare Card' for healthcare at government hospitals and free medicines through 'Rajiv Gandhi Pharmacy' chains.
- To slash property tax and electricity rates by 50 percent. The manifesto said if the party forms its government, it will charge Rs. 2 per unit for up to 200 units on household power consumption.
- To set up fast-track courts for serious economic offences to deal with cases of defaults, cheque bounce, cheating, fraud, extortion, land grabbing etc.
- The Congress will ensure "equal work equal pay" as well as the increase in minimum wages for labourers. Indira canteens also will be set up to provide affordable nutritious and delicious food for the labour class at Rs. 10 per plate.
- In the manifesto, the Congress also promised setting up a minority commission to implement its 15-point agenda for the uplift of minorities and providing 'Babasaheb Ambedkar Samajik Suraksha Card' for unorganized workers.
- The Congress also assured financial assistance and pension to widows, senior citizens and the differently-abled.
- The Congress will also adopt a Smart Village Policy to stop migration and make provision of ponds, playgrounds, sanitation and drinking water supply to villages.
- The Congress party, in the end, also promised to construct 25 lakh houses in the next five years under various schemes like Indira Aawas Yojana, Rajiv Gandhi Aawas Yojana and Ambedkar Aawas Yojana.
Interestingly, Gujarat will decide the fate of BJP and Congress in two phases. The first phase of Gujarat polls will be held on 9 December 2017 for 89 seats while the second phase of voting will be held on 14 December 2017 for remaining 93 seats. Counting of votes will be done on December 18 of this year.
Currently, BJP has 120 legislators in Gujarat assembly, while the opposition Congress has 47 MLAs. While the latter had won 59 seats in the last assembly polls in 2012, a dozen of its legislators had recently left the party with some of them joining the ruling BJP. The term of the 182-member Gujarat Assembly ends on January 22.