The Congress released its manifesto for Bengal on Monday, promising that if voted to power, it would provide a monthly financial assistance of Rs 5,700 to economically backward families.
The promise is in lines with the Trinamul Congress’s vow to offer universal basic income to 1.6 crore families. Although Congress state chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury didn’t elaborate, he said the financial assistance scheme fell under his party’s promise to provide social security.
“Keeping Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy’s ideologies ahead of us…we are releasing this manifesto where we have made eight promises…the promise to provide social security is one of them…” Chowdhury said.
While releasing her party’s manifesto last week, Trinamul chief Mamata Banerjee had said if she was voted back to power, a monthly amount of Rs 500 (Rs 6,000 a year) to general category households and Rs 1,000 (Rs 12,000 a year) to SC/ST category households would be directly deposited in the bank accounts of the female heads of 1.6 crore families.
The Congress scheme, however, is a conditional direct benefit transfer scheme for poor families which make up 20 per cent of the total households in the state, according to the Congress’s own estimates.
It was Congress leader Rahul Gandhi who had first announced a UBI scheme before the 2019 general election. He promised that the scheme that pledged to provide Rs 72,000 annually to each family would benefit over 250 million of the poorest Indians. In the Economic Survey of India 2016-17, a UBI scheme has also been advocated as an alternative to various social welfare schemes meant to eradicate poverty.
Congress, which is contesting the Assembly polls in alliance with the Left parties and the Indian Secular Front, has repeatedly attacked the Trinamul government for allegedly failing to maintain law and order in the state. Hence, it promises to establish rule of law and ensure security of women in the manifesto.
The manifesto iterates that three contentious farm laws will not be implemented in Bengal and promises to double farm income through various means.
Congress also promises to focus on expansion of industrialisation, setting up a politics-free educational environment, strengthening the state’s healthcare infrastructure, ensure arsenic-free drinking water and stop soil erosion in the districts of Malda and Murshidabad.
Taking a dig at Mamata’s “outsider” against “insider” theory, Congress manifesto states that people from several parts of India have come and lived here. They have become a part of Bengal’s culture. The manifesto vows to protect the cultural diversity in Bengal.
Promising that it would bring Bengal out of the “politics of dole”, the Congress in its manifesto says: “Bengal experienced the maximum stable development during the reign of Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy. We want to bring back the Bengal of Dr. Bidhan Roy’s dreams.”
However, the issue of CAA is conspicuously missing from Congress’ manifesto for Bengal, being dubbed as Banglar Disha (the Way for Bengal) by the party. The absence of such an issue from the manifesto gains importance at a time when Congress leaders have been regularly saying that the contentious citizenship matrix will not be implemented in Assam.
