Days ahead of the Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday released its manifesto titled Sankalp Patra with a slew of promises, such as increasing the minimum support price (MSP) of wheat to ₹2,700 per quintal and that of paddy to ₹3,100 per quintal.
The manifesto launched by BJP national president J.P. Nadda, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and other party leaders also promised concrete houses to more than 1.30 crore beneficiaries of M.P. government’s flagship scheme Ladli Behna Yojana. The BJP also promised that beneficiaries of Ladli Behna and the Centre’s Ujjwala Yojana would receive LPG cylinders at a subsidised rate of ₹450.
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The Congress has already released its manifesto in which it had promised to purchase wheat at ₹2,600 per quintal and rice at ₹2,500 per quintal. It had also promised an Indian Premier League (IPL) team for the State; ₹25-lakh health insurance cover, including an accident insurance cover of ₹10 lakh for all families; a caste-based survey; 27% reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs); farm loan waiver up to ₹2 lakh; and implementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), among others.
The BJP has been in power in Madhya Pradesh since 2003 barring a 15-month period between December 2018 and March 2020 when the Congress ruled the State with Kamal Nath as Chief Minister.
The BJP has also promised to establish one engineering institute named Madhya Pradesh Institute of Technology, on the lines of Indian Institutes of Technologies (IITs), in each division of the State. Mr. Nadda said that if the BJP forms the government in the State, it will also set up one medical college — Madhya Pradesh Institute of Medical Sciences, on the lines of Centre’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) — in each division.
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A medical city named Atal Medicity would also be established.
The party has promised free education from kindergarten to postgraduation for girls from below poverty line (BPL) families, Eklavya Model Residential Schools in all Scheduled Tribe-designated blocks of the State and one medical college each in all tribal districts.
The BJP also proposes a Bundelkhand Development Board with an investment of ₹5,000 crore for the underdeveloped region of the State. It has also promised similar development boards for the Vindhya and Mahakoshal regions.
The ruling party, in an attempt to woo the State’s 21% tribal population, has promised that ₹3 lakh crore would be spent on the development of the community.
The BJP also said that the financial assistance to girls under Ladli Lakshmi Yojana will be increased from ₹1.43 lakh to ₹2 lakh.
Mr. Nadda said that six new expressways will be developed in the State. They are the 867-km Narmada Pragati Path between Amarkantak and Alirajpur; 676-km Vindhya expressway connecting Bhopal to Singrauli; 450-km Malwa Nimar Vikas Path between Mandsaur, Indore and Burhanpur; 299-km Atal Pragati Path between Morena and Bhind; 330-km Bundelkhand Vikas Path linking Bhopal and Chhatarpur; and 746-km Madhya Bharat Vikas Path connecting Morena with Betul.
Mr. Nadda also promised that two new airports will be developed in Rewa and Singrauli. He said while existing metro rail projects in Bhopal and Indore would be completed, new metro networks will come up in Gwalior and Jabalpur.
With the number of gig workers rising, the BJP has promised to set up a welfare board for them. The BJP has also promised 100-unit electricity for ₹100 to every household.
Talking about the process behind preparation of the manifesto, BJP’s M.P. unit president V.D. Sharma said that the party received more than 7 lakh suggestions through Jan Akanksha Petis (public wish boxes) across the State. The boxes were placed in public spaces during the BJP’s 11,000-km Jan Ashirwad Yatras earlier this year, he said.
Commenting on the BJP’s manifesto, Congress national general secretary in-charge of Madhya Pradesh Randeep Surjewala called it “jumla patra”.
“Liars and dishonest people are issuing a jumla patra, how do you trust them? The time has come for the farewell of those who brought Madhya Pradesh to the brink of destruction in 18 and a half years,” he said, speaking to reporters.
