‘Haryana non-stop’, BJP promises Rs 2,100 for women, job guarantee for all Agniveers

Rohtak: With the slogan “Haryana non-stop”, BJP national President J.P. Nadda on Thursday promised a cash incentive of Rs 2,100 per month for women, continuation of the minimum support price (MSP) on all 24 crops, government job guarantee for all Agniveers retiring from the Indian Army and two lakh jobs for the youths, besides cooking gas cylinder at Rs 500 and scooter for girl students in rural areas.

Releasing the party’s 20-point manifesto named ‘Sankalp Patra’ (commitment document) for the October 5 Assembly polls in Haryana, Union Minister Nadda said, “For the Congress, this document (manifesto) is just a formality. For them, this document is just to fulfil a ritual and for them, this document is to cheat the people. For us, it’s a commitment document.”

“What was the image of Haryana 10 years ago? The image of Haryana was that of getting jobs on the ‘kharchi-parchi’ (corruption-favouritism) system. Haryana was known for land scams, acquiring land of farmers, change of land use...For us ‘Sankalp Patra’ is a sacrosanct document. We are serving Haryana non-stop.”

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s manifesto was released a day after the state's main Opposition, the Congress, released seven guarantees that it will fulfil if it comes to power in Haryana, which include Rs 2,000 monthly payment to women in the state and houses for everyone.

As per the BJP’s manifesto, Rs 2,100 per month would be provided to all women under Laado Laxmi Yojana, construction of 10 industrial cities on the lines of IMT Kharkhoda, special incentives to entrepreneurs to provide jobs to 50,000 local youth per city, under Chirayu-Ayushman Yojana free treatment up to Rs 10 lakh would be provided to each family, free treatment facility up to Rs 5 lakh to each person above 70 years of age and purchase of 24 crops at declared MSP.

The party promises guaranteed government jobs to two lakh youth “without any slip and without any expense”, employment opportunities for 5 lakh youths and a monthly stipend from the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme, 7.5 lakh houses in urban and rural areas, dialysis in government hospitals and diagnosis in all hospitals for free, Olympic Games nursery in every district, LPG cylinder for Rs 500 under Har Ghar Grihani Yojana, under the Awal Balika Yojana every girl student going to college in a rural area will be given a scooter, guarantee of a government job to every Haryanvi Agniveer, construction of KMP’s Orbital Rail Corridor and launch of new Vande Bharat trains and various rapid rail services and Intercity Express Metro service between Faridabad and Gurugram.

The BJP promises separate welfare boards with an adequate budget for small backward castes (36 communities), an increase in all social monthly pensions based on scientific formula linking dearness allowance (DA) and pensions, full scholarships to students of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Scheduled Castes from Haryana studying medicine and engineering from any government college in India, government will guarantee loans up to Rs 25 lakh for all OBC category entrepreneurs, in addition to the Mudra Scheme, to provide training in modern skills by making Haryana a centre of global education, and an international Aravalli Jungle Safari Park in South Haryana

The BJP is eyeing a hat-trick of wins in the state under the leadership of Nayab Singh Saini, a non-Jat but OBC leader.

The last election was fought under the leadership of Manohar Lal Khattar, who was at the helm for nearly nine-and-a-half years till March 2024, paving the way for the next Chief Minister.

The manifesto was released amidst the presence of outgoing Chief Minister Saini, state party president Mohan Lal Badoli, former CM Manohar Lal Khattar (now a Union Minister), and others.