Farmers Movement Archive

Focus on women, caste blocs, refugees in BJP’s manifesto

Kolkata: The BJP manifesto for the Bengal polls, released in the city on Sunday by Union home minister Amit Shah, focuses on implementing CAA in the first cabinet meet, placing special focus on women empowerment and giving emphasis to backward sections and ethnic groups and castes. Called ‘Sankalp Patra’ — or a testament to the party’s resolve — the manifesto promises to regularise the citizenship of refugees immediately after assuming office. “Refugees have been living here since the 70s, 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. 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 party also proposed a 33% reservation for women in all government jobs. Regarding the “KG to PG” scheme, Shah 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 one lakh to a woman from the SC, ST, OBC and economically weaker section at the time of her wedding. Also, the manifesto promises “free public transport” to women and girls in the state. The manifesto promises to bring Mahishya, Teli and other Hindu OBCs under the ambit of OBC reservation. 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 the tea garden workers was proposed to be increased to Rs 350 from Rs 176 per day at present. 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. The 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 an Oscar”. If voted to office, the party also promises to keep aside Rs 500 crore for Kolkata to get the UNESCO Heritage City tag. “We will constitute a Sonar Bangla economic revival task force that will formulate new industrial policy to promote Bengal as investment destination and revive the sick industrial units,” Shah said. Assuring to bring Bengal among the top three states in terms of the ease of doing business, he said that Invest Bangla will be formed on the lines of centrally sponsored Invest India. While all dues of the state government towards the 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 one lakh crore will be spent over five years for development of roads jointly with the centrally sponsored schemes. The 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, wgere meals would be provided at Rs 5 to all. The 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.

The Times of India

2021-03-22

Kolkata