 "K Chandrashekhar Rao, KCR")
A free life insurance cover of up to Rs 5 lakh for each family below poverty line (BPL), a gradual increase in financial assistance to farmers under the Rythu Bandhu scheme over the next five years and supply of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder at Rs 400 – these were among a slew of promises announced by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) on Sunday ahead of the Telangana Assembly elections next month.
Addressing a press conference at Telangana Bhavan, BRS chief and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, popularly known as KCR, said that his government had fulfilled all of the promises made during the 2018 elections to make the state number one in all aspects.
He also expressed confidence that his party would return to power in this year's polls.
"We have the best economic policy, agriculture policy, drinking water policy, irrigation policy, power policy, Dalit policy, welfare policy, industrial policy and housing policy in the country, and they are all being implemented successfully. The current manifesto aims to not only continue all these policies, but also introduce new ones that would improve the livelihood of all sections of people," he said.
Voting in Telangana is scheduled to be held on November 30. The results will be announced on December 3. The terms of the legislative assembly of Telangana end on January 16, next year.
Explaining the BRS manifesto
Explaining his party manifesto, Chief Minister KCR said that if his party was voted back to power, around 9.3 million families in the BPL category would be provided with a life insurance cover of up to Rs 5 lakh for free under KCR Bima. This scheme would be introduced on the lines of Rythu Bima scheme.
The Rythu Bima scheme is an agricultural insurance scheme launched by the Telangana government in August 2018 to provide insurance coverage and financial support to farmers who die due to distress or commit suicide on account of crop failure due to natural calamity or pest attack, etc.
Also Read: KCR briefs candidates ahead of polls, asks them to reach out to grassroots
Also Read: KCR briefs candidates ahead of polls, asks them to reach out to grassroots
"The government itself will pay 100 per cent premium to the Life Insurance Corporation [LIC] for all the beneficiaries. It will not only provide relief to the poor families but also save the LIC from being pushed into losses," he said.
The party also promised to distribute fine rice to all ration card holders under the Telangana Annapurna Scheme beginning in April-May 2024. At present, the Telangana government is supplying rice at Rs 1 a kg, in addition to rice provided by the Centre free of cost under Garib Kalyan Yojana.
The chief minister further announced to increase the social security pensions for senior citizens and women under the "Aasara" scheme, from the present Rs 2,016 per month each to Rs 6,000 in the next five years. "In the coming year, it will be made Rs 3,016 and will be gradually enhanced to Rs 6,000 in the next five years," he said.
"The Divyangs [people with disabilities] have already been promised Rs 4,016 from this year, and it will be increased to Rs 6,000 gradually," he added.
He also announced an increase in financial aid to farmers in the state, from the present Rs 10,000 each per year, under the Rythu Bandhu scheme. "This will be increased to Rs 12,000 in the first year and gradually Rs 16,000 in the next five years. Paddy procurement policy will continue," the chief minister said.
KCR also assured financial assistance of Rs 3,000 per month to each eligible poor woman under the new Soubhagya Lakshmi scheme, if it is voted to power.
He promised to supply LPG cylinders at a subsidised rate of Rs 400 to each eligible BPL family if the BRS returns to power.
"This is to help women who are being burdened with ever-increasing LPG prices by the Centre. The state government itself will bear the subsidy burden," he said, adding that the subsidised LPG cylinders would be made available to even families of accredited journalists.
The manifesto announced the introduction of a new health scheme named "KCR Arogya Raksha" that would provide cashless treatment of up to Rs 15 lakh at private hospitals to all eligible persons. Under an existing Arogyasri scheme, the limit is Rs 10 lakh. "We shall also extend this health scheme to accredited journalists," stated the chief minister.
BRS' manifesto further promised to continue building double-bedroom houses for another 100,000 poor families, as well as to pay Rs 5 lakh to those who own their house site.
It also vowed to construct 119 residential schools for economically weaker sections among the upper caste people, one in each constituency, on the lines of the existing residential institutions for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and minorities.
The party promised a policy for orphan children. "The state government will adopt these orphaned children and call them 'State Children' and provide them all educational facilities," KCR said.
The chief minister assured to bring out a policy to ensure that the poor can sell their assigned government lands whenever they need money.
For minorities, the chief minister announced that the budgetary allocation for their welfare would be enhanced significantly to safeguard the Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb in the state.
Battle for Telangana
In Telangana, the BRS, Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are locked in a triangular fight, with some early surveys indicating a neck-and-neck battle between the regional behemoth and the Congress. The results will be crucial not only for the 2024 general elections, but also for Opposition dynamics as the BRS has maintained equal distance from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA).
The BRS has dominated the state since its formation in 2014, but is now battling anti-incumbency and corruption charges.
'Copying' manifesto for Telangana Assembly polls
Alleging that the promises made in the BRS manifesto were a copy of the six guarantees announced by the Congress, state Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief A Revanth Reddy said, "When we announced six guarantees, the BRS leaders said they cannot be implemented. Now, the ruling party has made more or less similar promises with slight modifications. It shows that the BRS is afraid of our guarantees."
On the other hand, BJP state president G Kishan Reddy ridiculed the promises made by BRS in its manifesto for the upcoming polls.
"Many promises he had made before the 2018 assembly elections, such as three acres of land for Dalits, unemployment allowance to the jobless youth, reopening of loss-making public sector undertakings, setting up of industrial corridor between Hyderabad and Warangal, financial assistance for construction of houses, etc, were not implemented," he said, adding that except the schemes which were funded by the Centre, no other scheme was properly implemented in the last five years.
