The Left Front on Thursday released a draft election manifesto with the aim to reach out to young voters with promises of extensively dealing with their demands of jobs.

It is for the first time the Left Front released a draft manifesto for public circulation. “We want all stakeholders and the common man to share their views on the manifesto. We will scrutinise and try to accommodate these opinions in the final manifesto without harming the spirit of the Left Front,” CPM politburo member Md Salim said.

The draft has been shared with allies Congress and Indian Secular Front in the Sanjukta Morcha. “They may have their own manifestos. We want commonality in all three documents. The Sanjukta Morcha will later issue a joint appeal,” Salim added.

Learning a lesson from the harrowing experiences of migrant workers during last year’s lockdown, the draft promises a separate department to deal with expatriate and migrant workers.

“...Our entire campaign and outreach programmes have been woven around the issue of unemployment. This includes (issues such as) lack of appointments by state and union governments, non-creation of jobs and privatisation of public entities that led to job loss,” said Salim.

The draft says the Left Front-led government will complete appointments in vacant government and semi-government posts, including those in educational institutes, within a year. It also speaks of easy loans to rejuvenate micro, small and medium industries.

The document specifies that if it comes to power in Bengal it will neither allow the implementation of Centre’s three farm bills nor the CAA. It says the APMC Act passed by the incumbent state government will be dismissed, since it is allegedly in line with the Centre’s farm bills.

The draft is cautious in its land acquisition policy, indicating that it has the Singur and Nandigram movements in mind. “Land will be acquired after creating consensus...and keeping in mind environmental aspects. The land-giver families will be given profitable payment...At least one member of the family will have to be trained and employed in such cases,” the manifesto reads.

The Left Front promises to guarantee 150 days of employment in the rural sector in place of the current 100 days. It assures a hike in minimum wage from Rs 400 to Rs 700 a day or Rs 21,000 a month. Workers of shut factories will get a monthly stipend of Rs 2,500 and affordable ration. The draft promises rice at Rs 2 a kilo or 35kg a month for every poor family.

The Left promises to spend 20 per cent of the state budget on education and make government healthcare free.

In a first of its kind, the Left Front manifesto speaks of the welfare of the LGBTQA+ community. The physically impaired will get a monthly stipend hike — from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000.

The Centre will be asked to share half of its total earnings in terms of taxes and clear GST arrears, it adds.