Poll Pointers

With the instant hit housing- for-all poll promise by the Congress probably weighing heavy on his mind, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi unveiled his election pledge document on Monday with a plan to spend Rs 3 lakh crores over the next five years that has something for all but leaves out the minority community. 

”Gujarat will become an auto-hub, global energy hub and the logistics gateway of India,” he spelt out.

With the pending polls taking precedence over his Delhi dreams, Modi put the Muslims who were the subject of his sadbhavana overtures last September on the backburner. Instead, he concentrated on carving a new class between the poor and the middle class coining a term ”neo-middle class” to describe it. A "neo-middle class" has evolved during the last decade in Gujarat which needs to be pushed to grow to exponential levels,” he said, pointing out that the state government would set up a panel to identify and define this class and work out numerous schemes to ensure it’s growth.

Increasingly aware that his party’s votes come in large measure from the urban segments and hoping to encash on the emerging youthful voter, the manifesto boasted of a policy that would encourage youth- led development, facilitating skill development and creating employment opportunities including hostel facilities for 40,000 higher education students and a chief minister’s scholarship scheme to support deserving students. English medium government schools, skill development corporation with a university to match and centres for excellence to create a 2.5 crore strong skilled youth force are the other promises on offer.

”My government will stand guarantor for the youth speaking loans for self employment,” he added.

Aware of the fact that the Congress poll promise of housing had touched a raw spot leading to a frenzy to fill forms and submit it amongst all classes both rural and urban, the BJP manifesto sought to outdo the principal opposition on this score. It promised 50 lakh pucca houses to be built over the next five years, 28 lakhs in the rural areas and 22 lakhs in the urban areas.

The chief minister also promised accident insurance to the entire population of the state and creation of a “sant nagri” (saint city) in the honour of great saints besides development of  “Sri Ram Pagdandi” in the tribal region of Dangs, where according to mythology, Lord Rama had spent some time during his sojourn.

The BJP poll promise also included among other things enhanced financial allocation of the ‘Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojna’ from Rs 15,000 crores to Rs 40,000 crores, Sagar Khedu Scheme from Rs 11,000 crores to Rs 22,000 crores a similar package for scheduled castes and a second phase of the urban poor welfare scheme to Rs 25,000 crores. 

Some other salient features are development of 13 Special Investment Regions (SIR), tripling of cargo handling capacity of Gujarat’s ports as well as introduction of Integrated Port Management system and development of Port cities. Alongisde the ship breaking industry, Ship building and Ship repairing industries will be strategically developed as well as power generation doubled in the next five years, the document said.