What did BJP and Congress promise voters? What will it cost?

The Assembly elections may soon be done and dusted with the BJP emerging triumphant in Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh and the Congress springing a win in Telangana but the cost to the exchequer remains to be tallied. The BJP and Congress, trying to secure victory at the polls, promised to rain down sops on the electorate — particularly in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana. Let’s take a closer look at what the parties promised and what it will cost the treasury of the states: Chhattisgarh The Congress in its manifesto for the Chhattisgarh Assembly polls promised a caste census, loan waiver for farmers, Rs 3,200 for per quintal for paddy procurement and subsidised cooking gas cylinders to women under a new scheme. As per Newslaundry, the Chhattisgarh government exchequer lost Rs 9,000 in 2018 after the Congress’ one-time loan waiver to 19 lakh farmers.

The outlet, which pegs the number of farmers at 25 lakh, estimated that a similar waiver would lose the exchequer over Rs 11,000 crore.

The BJP in its manifesto – which the Congress had dubbed a ‘copycat’ – vowed to launch the ‘Krishi Unnati Scheme’, under which 21 quintal per acre paddy will be procured from farmers at Rs 3,100 per quintal. As per The Wire, the BJP also promised to fulfil the outstanding paddy procurement bonus in line with the for the last two years of the Raman Singh government at Rs 300 per quintal by 25 December. It also promised annual financial assistance to married women and landless agriculture labourers and and cooking gas cylinders at Rs 500 to poor families. Newslaundry estimated that the BJP’s poll promises would cost the state Rs 38,000 crore, while it put the figure for the Congress at around Rs 44,000 crore. Rajasthan Like Chhattisgarh, the Congress had promised a caste survey in Rajasthan. The then Ashok Gehlot government also said it would implement reservation in proportion to the population. The manifesto said 10 lakh new job opportunities would be created for the youth including four lakh government jobs. It promised the enactment of a law to ensure minimum support prices (MSP) to farmers following the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations. It also said the amount for beneficiaries under the Chiranjeevi health insurance scheme would be doubled from ₹25 lakh to ₹50 lakh per year. The manifesto also promised interest-free loans up to ₹2 lakh for farmers from the cooperative banks, a new scheme for recruitment at the panchayat level gradually merging with government vacancies, interest-free loans up to ₹5 lakh to small traders and shopkeepers and enactment of an Accountability and Auto Service Delivery Act for good governance.

The Gehlot government had also promised to spend Rs 15,000 crore on sops for women if it returned to power, as per Newslaundry.

Gehlot had promised free smartphones and internet for three years to 1 crore women – amounting to Rs 5,000 crore and another Rs 10,000 crore for women under the Griha Lakshmi Guarantee scheme where they would be given Rs 10,000 per year. [caption id=“attachment_13459432” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Women voters show their fingers marked with electoral ink after casting their votes at a polling booth during Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections, in the outskirts of Bhopal. Women constitute a very important vote bank in the state. File image/PTI[/caption] The BJP in its manifesto had vowed a subsidy of Rs 450 per LPG cylinder for Ujjwala scheme beneficiaries, 2.5 lakh government jobs and increasing the financial assistance to farmers under the PM-Kisan scheme. Party chief JP Nadda also vowed promised a slew of schemes for girls and women including a ‘mahila thana’ in every district and ‘mahila desk’ in every police station as well as an anti-romeo squad in every city. Newslaundry said the BJP’s rural guarantees alone would cost the exchequer Rs 9,000 crore. Madhya Pradesh The Congress’ Madhya Pradesh manifesto made a slew of promises including Rs 25 lakh health insurance cover to all the people, 27 per cent reservation for OBCs, and even the formation of an IPL team. The manifesto, which called for health insurance cover of Rs 25 lakh, also vowed an accidental cover of Rs 10 lakh for every citizen. The party also promised farm loan waivers of up to Rs 2 lakh and assistance of Rs 1,500 per month for women. The party promised LPG cylinders at Rs 500, make school education free, implementation of the Old Pension Scheme and unemployment allowance

As per Newslaundry, the farm loan waiver and the writing of electricity bills amounts to Rs 4,015 crore.

The Congress in all would have spent around Rs 27,000 crore fulfilling various promises, as per the website. The BJP ahead of the polls promised MSP of Rs 2,700 per quintal for wheat and Rs 3,100 for paddy. It also promised homes for beneficiaries of the state’s flagship scheme ‘Ladli Bahna’. It said it would give free education to girls from poor families till post-graduation, free education to poor students up to Class 12 and cooking gas cylinder at Rs 450 for beneficiaries of Ladli Bahna and ‘PM Ujjwala’ scheme. It also promised six new expressways and a budget of Rs 3 lakh crore for the empowerment of tribal communities. As per Newslaundry, the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government vowed to spend Rs 56,000 on farm schemes alone. Telangana The Congress in its manifesto for Telangana listed six guarantees including old age pension of Rs 4,000 and LPG cylinders at Rs 500. It vowed  Rs 2,500 per month and gas cylinders at Rs 500 for women, as well as 200 units of free electricity for all households. The party also promised to scrap Dharani, an integrated land administration portal and replace it with a new revenue system. Under Rythu Bharosa, the party promised Rs 15,000 investment assistance for farmers every year and Rs 12,000 for farm labourers. As per Newslaundry, the financial aid for farmers alone – given that there are 70.54 lakh registered farmers in the state – would cost the treasury Rs 10,500 crore. Under ‘Cheyutha’, Rs 4,000 old age pension and Rs 10 lakh health insurance cover will be given to eligible beneficiaries. Under Vidya Bharosa Card, financial assistance card of Rs 5 lakh would be provided to students, which can be used in the payment of college fees (in addition to fee reimbursement) and other education-related expenditure. [caption id=“attachment_13295932” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Representational image/Getty Images[/caption] “Free internet through Wi-Fi facilities will be provided to all students,” it said. The party has also promised to provide financial assistance of Rs 12,000 per year to every auto rickshaw driver. It also offered a 50 per cent discount on pending traffic challans through a one-time settlement scheme.

As per Mint, the BJP had said it would establish the “Lado Protsahan Yojna” in Telangana.

Under this scheme, a family that brings a girl child into the world would be given a savings bond of ₹2 lakh. The family would receive Rs 6,000 when the girl moves up to Class 6 in school, Rs 8,000 for Class 9, Rs 10,000 for Class 10, Rs 12000 for Class 11 and Rs 14000 for Class 12. She would receive the entire Rs 2 lakh after turning 21. The party also said it would increase the aid under the PM Matru Vandan scheme to Rs 8,000 from Rs 5,000. The BJP in its manifesto said that it will reduce VAT to bring down inflation and give respite to the common people. The party also promised to purchase the entire rice produced in Telangana and said it would provide ₹3,100 MSP on Paddy and the required Market Intervention Fund for turmeric. “The National Turmeric Board that has been established by the Modi Government will support turmeric farmers to bring about value addition such that the export of turmeric gets a fillip. We will establish processing centres to boost employment generation,” the manifesto read. “Free crop insurance to farmers through PM Fasal Bima Yojana. Provide 4 Gas cylinders free of cost annually to Ujjwalabeneficiaries,” it added.

As per Newslaundry, the BJP’s four free cylinders scheme would cost the exchequer Rs 2,100 crore.

That scheme, if continued for five years, would amount to Rs 10,500 crore. Mizoram The Congress in Mizoram vowed the reintroduction of the old pension scheme, LPG cylinders at Rs 750 for poor households and a health insurance cover of Rs 15 lakh per family for cashless treatment at hospitals. It announced the setting up of the ‘Tang Puihna’ scheme under which monetary assistance of Rs 2 lakh would be provided to help farmers and entrepreneurs develop sustainable economic and livelihood activities and prosper. It also vowed to make a budgetary provision of Rs 5 crore every year, for providing assistance to patients undergoing treatment for cancer and other serious ailments. The party said it would establish a ‘young Mizo entrepreneurs programme’ with startup funding provisions, and target creating 1 lakh jobs for the state’s youths. Among other promises it made were an old-age pension of Rs 2,000 per month, and LPG cylinders at Rs 750 for Antyodaya Anna Yojana and Priority Household, besides those Below Poverty Line and families headed by women. The BJP in its Mizoram manifesto said it would increase the annual financial assistance for cultivators under the PM-Kisan scheme to Rs 8,000 from Rs 6,000.

The party vowed to double the coverage under the Ayushman Bharat scheme from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakhs.

As per Newslaundry, the party said fish farmers would be given Rs 6,000 financial aid, “meritorious” girls in Class 12 would be given free scooties,  all girls from KG to PG would be given free education. The party also promised financial aid for girl students between Rs 3,000 and Rs 1 lakh until age 21. [caption id=“attachment_13052002” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Representational Image[/caption] The party also vowed to invest Rs 1,000 crore to revamp the agricultural infrastructure of the state. The BJP also promised a budget of Rs 250 crore to revamp the government schools, and Rs 350 crore to build new government colleges and revamp the existing ones. It said it would introduce a 33 per cent reservation for women in government jobs and investigation into a social welfare scheme of the MNF government. It will also introduce 33 per cent reservation for women in government jobs, and establish ‘Mizoram Hmeichhiate Battalion’ – the state’s first all-women police battalion, he said. The BJP will also allocate Rs 3,000 crore to upgrade and modernise all roads over the five years. It vowed to revamp state tourism with a corpus of Rs 250 crore. It also said the Zoram Medical College (ZMC) will be upgraded to Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS). With inputs from agencies