Will meet poll promises in this fiscal: K’taka CM | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
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Will meet poll promises in this fiscal: K’taka CM

Jun 03, 2023 12:58 AM IST

On Friday, the CM chaired a cabinet meeting to discuss the modalities of implementing the poll guarantees

Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Friday announced that “five guarantees” promised by the Congress during its successful election campaign will be implemented by the end of this financial year. The party came to power in the state on May 13, winning 135 out of the 224 assembly seats.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah addresses a press conference at Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru on Friday. (ANI)
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah addresses a press conference at Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru on Friday. (ANI)

The five guarantees promised are 200 units of free power to all households (Gruha Jyoti), 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family (Gruha Lakshmi), 10kg free rice to every member of a Below Poverty Line (BPL) household (Anna Bhagya), 3,000 monthly stipend to unemployed graduates and 1,500 for unemployed diploma holders (both in the age group of 18-25) for two years (Yuva Nidhi), and free travel for women in public transport buses (Shakti).

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On Friday, the CM chaired a cabinet meeting to discuss the modalities of implementing the poll guarantees.

“The KPCC chief and I signed guarantee cards and distributed them to the voters, assuring them that we would fulfil all five guarantees... Today’s (Friday) special cabinet meeting discussed these guarantee schemes, and they will be executed within the current fiscal year. These schemes will be extended to people of all castes, religions, and languages,” Siddaramaiah told reporters after the meeting.

The CM, however, didn’t disclose the cost of the implementation of these projects. “We will explain the cost of each scheme in the due course of time,” he told reporters.

He further explained the conditions, and announced deadlines for each scheme.

Under the Shakti scheme, the chief minister said, all women passengers will be allowed free travel in state-run buses from June 11, but only within Karnataka and not to other states. The scheme also excludes AC and luxury buses. The Karnataka State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will reserve 50% of seats for men and the remaining for women.

The implementation of Gruha Jyoti (which guarantees about 200 units of free electricity) will begin from July 1, said the CM. “Consumers who haven’t paid their bills until July will need to settle their dues,” he added.

The CM clarified that those who use electricity within 200 units will not have to pay the bill.

The scheme will depend on the yearly consumption at the household level. A monthly average will be calculated, an extra 10% added to it, and one won’t have to pay the power bill if the final figure is below 200 units, he said.

For Gruha Lakshmi, which guarantees 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family, bank accounts will need to be linked to Aadhaar. Due to technical problems in Aadhaar linking, and determining who is the family head, the verification process will be from June 15 to July 15, and finish by August 15 when the payments will begin. This scheme is for both BPL and Antyodaya cardholders. Those who already avail of social security pensions will get this 2,000 on top of that if she is the head of the family.

“Since a new software is required to link Aadhaar with bank accounts, it will only be operational in August. Applications will be processed between July 15 and August 15. The benefit of 2,000 will be transferred to the account numbers on August 15 every month. Both BPL and APL card holders will be eligible for the scheme,” he said. However, retired women government employees will not qualify for this benefit.

Talking about the Anna Bhagya that promises an assured 10 kg of rice free to every member of a BPL household, the CM said: “We were giving 7kg (in the previous government), they (BJP) made it 5 kg. Now, 10 kg of rice per head will be given to all members of BPL families.” This will begin on July 1.

On the Yuva Nidhi scheme, which provides a monthly stipend to unemployed people, the CM announced that benefits would be extended to all graduates who have completed their education in the 2022-23 academic year. Graduates will receive a monthly allowance of 3,000, while diploma holders will receive 1,500 for 24 months.

Siddaramaiah estimated that approximately 400,000 youngsters would be eligible for these unemployment benefits. “Any graduate who remains unemployed even after 180 days of completing college will be eligible for the benefit. All graduates, regardless of caste, or gender, including transgender individuals, will be eligible,” Siddaramaiah said.

The Opposition, however, accused the Congress of trying to cheat voters by attaching conditions to avail of the guarantee schemes.

“There is a big difference between the pre-election and the post-election statements of the party,” said former chief minister and BJP leader BS Bommai.

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