Ahead of Assembly polls in the state of Haryana, the Bhatiya Janta Party’s Haryana unit has released its election manifesto. It is a 25-page long manifesto written in Hindi. The upcoming elections have been scheduled for the 21st of October. The manifesto titled म्हारे सपनों का हरियाणा” (Translated in English as the Haryana of my dreams) was released by the BJP national working president JP Nadda and Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. Other Union Ministers were present at the release Narendra Singh Tomar.
Nadda in his statement discussed the present status of the previously introduced One Ran One Pension [OROP] scheme. He claimed that a total of 22 lakh cases have been addressed under OROP scheme and there are no pending OROP cases. He went back to PM Modi’s promise in Rewari to fulfil the demand on One Rank One Pension and went ahead to announce that a total of Rs. 12 crore has been disbursed under the scheme addressing 22 lakh cases, with no pendency.
Congress Manifesto has a ‘regressive’ mindset: ML Khattar
During the release ML Khattar also attacked the opposition for using ‘freebies’ to get vote in the state. He stated that the vision of BJP was fresh as they were not wooing voters for freebies rather focusing on setting doable goals and following a realist perspective. He remarked that the voters in the state are mature and wise and they are aware about the promises made in the context of limited financial resources.
He said that the manifesto focuses on helping the needy section in the society by following a healthy trend and not depending upon freebies in exchange for vote, as played by the opposition. He said that the poll manifest of Congress was only focused in loan-waiver and getting away with the minimum qualification criteria for panchayats, which is reflective of a regressive mind-set.
The BJP has put the manifesto forth as a ‘commitment paper’ saying to be representative of all people and all sections of the society. Broadly, the manifesto focuses on two major aspects, one is the income of farmers and the other is empowerment of the youth in Haryana.
Apart from these two points, which remain in focus it has also promised via its manifesto to provide a collateral free loan to people belonging to the Scheduled Caste [SC] upto Rs 3 lakh, if voted back to power again. For the wellbeing of the famers in the state of Haryana, the manifesto provides to give crop loan up to Rs 3 lakh to the farmers which will be given free of any interest, whatsoever.
What is in for the farmers of Haryana?
The manifesto has committed that the Bhartiya Janta Party will work towards coming up with a legal provision in place to make sure that the farmers while availing a loan do not have to mortgage any property or land more than 1.25 times of the loan amount. The manifesto commits that the income of the farmer and people involved in agriculture will double by 2022.
What is in for the youth of Haryana?
The manifesto has promised to allow the youths of the state to avail loan facilities without providing for guarantee for higher education. Moreover, it has a provision to provide skill training to the young population of the state with an outlay of Rs 500 crore to 25 lakh, if voted back to power again
What is in for the senior citizens of Haryana?
The manifesto specifically mentions that it will provide for old age pension of Rs. 3000 to the elderly, post-retirement.
What are the schemes for improving healthcare in Haryana?
The manifesto has focused on comprehensive healthcare in the state, as disclosed by Nadda in his statement. He said that Haryana will be made tuberculosis free in the next term of BJP, if voted back. He also added that approximately 2,000 health and wellness centre will be set up in the state if BJP comes to power. Furthermore, it has also promised to make the women and children in the state of Haryana free of anaemia in the next five years.
Nadda in his statement during the release has stated that the primary focus is on the status of comprehensive healthcare in the state. The party intends to make the State of Haryana tuberculosis-free by promulgating the TB Free State Mission is as well as provide for free bus travel for patients suffering from cancer and their companions.
What is in for women in the state of Haryana?
The manifesto has a special focus on women and girls in the state of Haryana. The party has pledged via its manifesto to ensure the provision of free education in all government education institutions upto the level for post-graduation. The scheme will be made available for two girls per family, provided the annual family income is less than Rs. 1.80 lakh or land holdings not more than five acres.
Another women-centric intiative that the manifesto has set out is the promise to initiate a service called the ‘Pink-Bus’. It has made clear that the party is intending to install varios sanitary napkin-vending machines at public places in villages and cities, conduct different self-defence training for school girls, and get in place fast-track courts to be to hear crime against girls and women. It has proposed a scheme called the Sushma Stree award which will be initiated to acknowledge women working towards the empowerment of other women.
Environmental-Friendly Initiatives:
On the environmental foot, the party has committed to bring SYL waters to the state of Haryana, as per a statement made by Khattar during the manifesto-release. Via its manifesto, the BJP has promised formation of a task force to clean Yamuna, Ghaggar and other rivers in the state. There will also be attempts made to make Haryana the first state in India to be free of single-use plastic as stressed by the Prime Minister, time and again.
Business Initiatives:
The manifesto focuses on the development of youth and ensuring self-employment opportunities in the state. It has shown positive will towards the ‘Antyodaya’ Ministries and setting up of a separate department to attract foreign investment will be set up. Other intiatives include:
- Facilitation of the MSMEs to secure loan up to Rs 10 lakh in just an hour and;
- A promise to enact a state-level legislation banning manual scavenging in the state, i.e., the entry of humans inside sewers to clean them up.
The BJP is calling its manifesto as a “vision document”. The head of the party’s manifesto committee Rajnath Singh made statement clarifying that the Modi government was committed to nationalism and zero tolerance towards terrorism. He also said that the party is committed towards the vision of implementing a Uniform Civil Code in the country. He said that for the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya, all alternative options will explored and will be implemented in the most conducive manner.