Rajasthan: Congress for loan waivers, girls' free schooling, dole for youth
New Delhi: Farmers and youth are on top of the agenda in the Rajasthan Congress manifesto, released on Thursday, by state unit chief Sachin Pilot in Jaipur.
The document titled ‘Jan Ghoshna Patra’ was released in the presence of former chief minister Ashok Gehlot and manifesto committee chairman Harish Choudhary AICC general secretary Avinash Pande. In its manifesto the Congress promised loan waiver to farmers, free education to girls and women, unemployment allowance of up to Rs 3,500 to educated youth and pension to elderly farmers are among the promises.
In the manifesto, the Congress said it would like to have agriculture equipment and tractor exempted from the Goods and Services Tax. It said a recommendation to bring petrol and diesel under the GST would be made to the GST Council. Speaking on the release of the manifesto, Mr Pilot said, “The Congress reached out to people in various ways, including on social media, and received nearly two lakh suggestions for the manifesto. The party aims to implement the manifesto in a time-bound manner on formation of a Congress government in Rajasthan, which has 200 Assembly seats.”
The Opposition party promised to promote organic farming, develop dairy industry, give a push to fisheries, provide internet facility in every panchayat, link villages with eastern Rajasthan canal project. It also promised to ensure quality health services to citizens, availability of wheat to BPL families at Rs 1 per kg, easy monetary loans to the youth and no fare in state-run buses for candidates travelling to appear in competitive exams. It said it will expedite work on rail connectivity in Dungarpur, Banswara and Tonk districts if it comes to power in the state.
It has promised new industry and tourism policies, promotion of local art, culture and heritage; a 24X7 women helpline, an IIT and polytechnic college for women in every district, increase in pension amount for the elderly, a journalists’ protection act, an advocates’ protection act and steps for security of religious pla-ces. It has also promised to run desert area development programmes, ma-ke efforts include Raja-sthani in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution.
