C'garh: A day after Cong, BJP releases poll manifesto

The BJP is not letting the Congress get ahead, the party released its election manifesto for Chhattisgarh on Saturday— a day after the Congress released its document.

Reading out the 'Sankalp Patra' (letter of promise), the BJP's manifesto, Chief Minister Raman Singh attacked the Congress saying that the support price of Rs 2,050 is already being given to farmers along with bonus.

The Congress in its manifesto has promised MSP of Paddy to be fixed at Rs 2,500 per quintal, while that of Maize will be Rs 1,700 per quintal and also that agriculture will be declared a key sector as per the Swaminathan commission.

Singh said that the Congress has announced higher support price only to get political benefit.

“From 2005-2014, the Congress had never opened pages of Swaminathan Committee report but now speaks of providing MSP. The Modi-government has already hiked one and a half times based on the report,’ he said and added that for the last 60 years, the Congress has been exploiting farmers.

Just like the Congress' promise of crafting a policy to tackle Maoism, the BJP's document also focuses on the eradication of the Maoist menace from the state.

The manifesto also presents a comparative study where a contrast is drawn between the condition of the state in 2003— when the rule of a Congress government came to an end in the state— and the the 'achievements' of the BJP government during the 15-year period in power.

On the infrastructure front, the document promises a state capital region by the inclusion of Raipur, Atal Nagar, Bhilai, Durg and Rajnandgaon, construction of a film city and houses for each of the urban poor by 2025.

It promises to place Chhattisgarh on tourism map of the world.

Basking on the legacy of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, it promise to the build the state the way Vajpayee dreamed it to be, by 2025.

Also putting forth a pan-society appeal, the party also promised a welfare board for journalists, advocate protection law, construction of government quarters in all blocks, Rs 5 lakh insurance scheme for retailers, immediate solution for complaints on service related issues of police and development of micro-blogging site for Chhattisgarh based NRIs.

The document also rolls out a series of farmer-centric schemes including a Rs 1,000 monthly pension to 60-plus-aged farmers and landless agricultural workers; construction of small dams, stop dams, new pump connections; promotion of organic farming; support price for pulses-oilseeds and forest produce; providing market for sale of forest produce.

The other list of promises in the manifesto include scholarship scheme; hiking ‘Noni Scheme’ amount to Rs 2 lakh; free bicycle, uniform, textbooks for students up to Class XII; scooty for meritorious students; interest free loan of Rs 2 lakh for women to do business and Rs 5 lakh for groups; allowance to unemployed; super specialty hospitals at Ambikapur and Jagdalpur; multi-specialty facilities at all district hospitals and a health insurance of Rs 5 lakh to poor families and for other families Rs 1 lakh.