Farmers Movement Archive

BJP’s Bengal vow: CAA on Day 1, Rs 10,000/year for refugee families

KOLKATA: BJP on Sunday came out with a shrewdly crafted, please-all manifesto for West Bengal polls — catering to all sections, placing special focus on women’s empowerment and giving emphasis to backward sections and ethnic groups and castes. Called ‘Sankalp Patra’ and released by Union home minister Amit Shah, the manifesto takes identitarian politics to new lengths and reflectes the party’s self-avowed confidence that a regime change in Kolkata is imminent. Read AlsoCAA likely to be implemented from January: VijayvargiyaBharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) West Bengal in-charge, Kailash Vijayvargiya on Saturday said that BJP led Centre government will start the process of granting citizenship to refugees under Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), from January next year. ​​​​"Most probably from January the process of grantingFor instance, the manifesto promises to regularise the citizenship of refugees immediately after assuming office, an assertion which at once tries to convey fidelity to a poll plank that resonates with a significant section of the electorate. “Refugees have been living here since the 1970s, and are pained at not having citizenship. We will implement CAA in the first cabinet meeting and provide citizenship to them,” Shah said. The document also contains a host of schemes for women and girls. Notable among them was a free education scheme, termed “from KG to PG”, and special bonds to SC, ST and OBC families for girls’ welfare. The manifesto also promises to bring Mahishya, Teli and other Hindu OBCs under the ambit of OBC reservation. On the healthcare front, the party proposed three new AIIMS — in north Bengal, Jangalmahal and the Sunderbans. A Rs 10,000 crore healthcare infrastructure fund was also proposed. Read AlsoCAA delay bother for BJP in 8 South Bengal assembly seatsKolkata: The delay over implementing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in Bengal has come as a bother for refugees from Bangladesh who migrated to the state in 2000 and after. These people, mainly Hindus, who settled in the border district of North 24 Parganas mostly along railway tracks andThe manifesto does not leave out arts and culture, something that has always strongly resonated in the Bengali mind. It promises a Tagore Prize “on the lines of the Nobel Prize”, and a Satyajit Ray Award, “on the lines of Oscar”. If voted to office, the party also promised to keep aside Rs 500 crore for Kolkata to get Unesco Heritage City tag. “Refugees have been living here since the 1970s, and are pained at not having citizenship. We will implement CAA in the first cabinet meeting and provide citizenship to them,” Shah said. Stressing on a “zero tolerance to infiltration” policy, he said a special fund would be created for refugees, from which each family would be provided Rs 10,000 per year after they receive citizenship. A corpus of Rs 100 crore was announced for that. Regarding the “KG to PG” scheme, he said there will be a corpus of Rs 500 crore to provide financial assistance to meritorious girls. Apart from a special Rs 50,000 bond for families with a girl child, the manifesto also announced Rs 1 lakh to women from the SC, ST, OBC and economically weaker sections at the time of their wedding. Also, the manifesto promised “free public transport” to women and girls. Apart from establishing specific development boards for the nine Scheduled Tribe communities like Santhals, Oraons, Mundas and Bhumijs, the manifesto also included increased funding to Matua, Rajbangshi, Bauri and the Bagdi development boards. Shah announced a Rs 1,000 crore fund to incentivise weavers, carpenters and tanners. For ST-dominated blocks, Shah announced 200 days’ work under the MGNREGA scheme. The wage for tea garden workers was proposed to be increased to Rs 350 from Rs 176 per day at present. “We will constitute a Sonar Bangla economic revival task force that will formulate new industrial policy to promote Bengal as an investment destination and revive sick industrial units,” Shah said. Assuring to bring Bengal among the top three states in terms of ease of doing business, he said Invest Bangla will be formed on the lines of centrally sponsored Invest India. While all dues of the state government towards MSME units will be cleared, electricity will be provided at Rs 2 per unit for these units. A special corpus of Rs 500 crore was also proposed for collateral-free loans to the units. The manifesto also proposed free electricity — up to 200 units — for domestic consumption and a Rs 30,000 crore fund to be spent over five years to develop infrastructure in 10 cities. Rs 22,000 crore has been earmarked for transforming Kolkata into “a city of future”. “The figure might sound odd to you, but we have made a detailed estimate for that,” Shah said. Rs 1 lakh crore will be spent over five years for development of roads jointly with the centrally sponsored schemes. BJP, which has been facing “outsider” barbs, on Sunday proposed Bengali and local languages as mandatory from Classes 1 to 10 in schools, irrespective of their instruction medium. It also proposed to make Bengali one of the official languages at the United Nations. Shah also proposed Annapurna canteens, where meals would be provided at Rs 5 to all. BJP, which is facing nationwide stir over the three farm laws and a “No Vote to BJP” campaign by farmers’ groups, wooed farmers through a host of schemes: Rs 4,000 per year was promised to landless farmers along with arrears, towards the centrally sponsored PM Kisan scheme. A Rs 20,000-crore corpus was proposed for agriculture infrastructure development and a Rs 5,000-crore corpus was proposed for the right price to farmers. It also proposed Rs 2,000 crore for infrastructure for fishermen and Rs 1,000 crore for development of dairy infrastructure. Watch BJP will give 33% reservation to women in govt jobs in Bengal: Amit Shah

The Times of India

2021-03-22