The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on March 17 released the manifesto for the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections 2021. The party has promised to generate around five lakh new jobs per year if it continues to remain in power.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while releasing the poll manifesto, said her government has strived over the past decade to bring down the rate of unemployment in the state.
"We will decrease unemployment. Five lakh job opportunities will be generated in a year," she said.
Mamata, who heads the Trinamool, also claimed that the government would build 25 lakh low-cost affordable homes for members of the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) community under the Bangla Abhaas Yojana.
The widow pension would also be provided to eligible members of all castes and religious communities, she said.
The manifesto also promised an annual aide of Rs 10,000 per acre to around 68 lakh small and marginal farmers in Bengal under the Krishak Bandhu scheme. The poll plank is likely aimed at countering the Centre's PM Kisan Samman Needhi scheme, which mandates an aide of Rs 6,000 a year to small and marginal farmers.
The state government would also issue 'Student Credit Cards' to eligible students, with credit limit up to Rs 10 lakh at four percent rate of interest.
To provide free ration to eligible households at door steps, Mamata promised the 'Duare Sarkar' programme.
"Duare Sarkar programme will be held four months a year. Free ration will be provided at doorstep," she said.
The state would offer 75 crore subsidied meals in 50 cities across Bengal, at a rate of Rs 5 per meal, the manifesto stated.
The chief minister also promised a new scheme to ensure every household in Bengal gets a minimum income support of Rs 500 per month. The amount will be provided to the female head of the family. For SC and ST families, the aide amount would be Rs 1,000 per month.
The popular Kanyashree and Rupashree schemes - aimed at monetarily aiding economically-stressed families with girls' education and marriage costs - would also be continued.
The Trinamool has also vowed to set up medical college-cum-super speciality hospitals in all 23 districts of the state. The number of seats for doctors, nurses and paramedics would be doubled, it claimed.
The manifesto further noted that an additional 10 lakh medium and smal and micro enterprises (MSMEs) would be added every year to increase the total number of functional MSME units to 1.5 crore.
"This is not a political manifesto, it is a development-oriented manifesto. This a manifesto of the people, for the people, and by the people," Mamata said.
While highlighting the achievements of her government over the past 10 years, the chief minister claimed that the financial condition of Bengal has strengthened since the TMC came to power in 2011.
The revenue has grown from around Rs 25,000 crore to over Rs 75,000 crore in the past decade, she said.
The manifesto noted that the GDP size of Bengal has grown to Rs 12.5 lakh crore, and the per capita income is Rs 2.5 lakh. The state is the fifth largest economy in India, it said.
The elections in Bengal will be held in eight phases between March 27 and April 29. The results would be declared on May 2 by the Election Commission of India.
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