Congress releases its manifesto for Karnataka polls

The Congress on Tuesday released its manifesto for the forthcoming Karnataka Assembly polls.

It was released by Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge in the presence of former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, KPCC chief DK Shivakumar and other leaders.

The manifesto is called 'Sarva Janangada Shanthiya Thota' (Peaceful garden of all communities).

Five Major Promises Made by Congress

In the manifesto, Congress has promised 200 units of free electricity under the Gruha Jyothi scheme, 10 kg rice free of cost to every Below Poverty Line (BPL) family, a monthly cash assistance of Rs 2,000 under the Gruha Lakshmi scheme to every woman head of household, Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders every month for two years under the Yuva Nidhi scheme and free travel for women in public buses in Karnataka.

Speaking at the occasion, Kharge said that Congress had fulfilled 158 promises out of 165 in 2013. He said, "I am giving the sixth guarantee that these guarantees will surely be implemented in the first cabinet meeting on the first day of the government formation."

Other Promises

A State Education Policy to reject the National Education Policy (NEP).

Repeal all anti-people laws passed by the BJP government.

Congress will sympathetically consider an extension of OPS to the pensionable government employees who joined service since 2006, to fill unapproved vacancies in all Government Departments within one year.

500 litres of tax-free diesel every year for deep sea fishing and to provide Rs 6,000 to all marine fishermen as a lean period allowance during the fishing holiday also to purchase cow dung at Rs.3 per kg and establish compost/manure centres in villages involving rural women/Youth.

To increase reservations for SC's from 15 per cent to 17 per cent, for ST's 3 per cent to 7 per cent, and restore the minority reservation 4 per cent and increase reservations for Lingayats, VokKaliggas and other communities and to pursue for inclusion in the 9th Schedule of the Constitution.

Organisations that promote enmity will be banned.

To establish Special fast track courts for the trial of terrorism cases and heinous crimes like rape, acid attack on women etc. and create a system.

To repeal the anti-farmer laws enacted by BJP Government and to withdraw all
politically motivated cases against farmers.

Check Full List of Promises Made by Congress in Its Manifesto

To demand from the Union Government the rightful share of Karnataka from the total taxes collected from Karnataka and fight against the efforts to dilute the constitutional rights in the federal system.

To come up with a policy framework to stop any kind of voter data theft incidents.

To constitute Bharath Jodo Social Harmony Committees in every grama Panchayats and to provide appropriate grants.

To make use of the cess and surcharge collected for a specific purpose viz. Library Cess, Constructions Cess, Health Cess etc. only for that specific purpose within a time frame.

To make all activities connected with procurements, developmental and infrastructural activities and recruitments transparent and accountable.

To separate the Disaster Management Department from Revenue Department.

To make all-round efforts to expedite the process of land acquisition and payment of compensation to farmers in a transparent and practical manner.

To put in a system issue of automatic receipts to all the tax collections by the Government

To issue permissions to all those who apply through single window agency within 3 months of the application and inform the applicant the status and reasons, if rejected.

To strengthen the SAKALA Act to ensure the timely delivery of services to all citizens of the state within a stipulated time limit.

To give Mandatory Training for updating of functional skills to the Government employees at least once in 3 years before effecting promotions.

To put in place a strict timeline to ensure that all local body elections are held regularly to ensure effective representation.

To launch a Praja Dwani Sabhas to maintain regular contact between elected officials and the public.

To Sympathetically consider to bring a separate schedule for minimum wage

Public Service:

To fill up approved vacancies in all Government Departments within one year.

To Sympathetically consider an extension of OPS to the pensionable government employees who joined the service since 2006

*To effect a scheme for considering the employees of Government Owned Transport Corporations on par with respective categories in the Government Service and other Boards and Corporations in terms of Salary and services under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act and within the budgetary provisions of the respective corporations.

To regularize the services of the presently working in-source employees under Health & Family Welfare Department on the lines of the actions being taken by the Congress Governments of Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh

To treat the employees of Government-owned transport corporations on par with government employees and other boards and corporations in terms of salary and services.

Giving due weightage to the contractual and guest faculties by bringing suitable amendments to the recruitment rules.

To give benefits to :

(A) : Increase monthly salary of Anganwadi Workers from to Rs. 11,500 to Rs. 15,000/ - and retirement benefit of Rs. 3 Lakhs on premature death or retirement

(B) : Mini Anganwadi workers from to Rs. 7,500 to Rs.10,000 and retirement benefit of Rs. 2 Lakhs on premature death or retirement

To provide ASHA workers with a fixed monthly honorarium of Rs. 5,000/- to Rs.8,000/-

*To enhance honorarium to Midday Meal Cooks from Rs.3,600 to Rs.6,000/-

Revenue:

To clear pending Padha and Inam land matters as per rules within the time-frame.

To transparently reorganize the Survey Department.

To frame people friendly policies to dispose of the absent revenue records.

To clear all the pending Darkast and Podi issues within a year.

Public Works:

To abolish corruption in public works and to create a transparent tender systems in PWD, Rural Development, Irrigation, Urban Development and Power sector by enacting a special law to punish the perpetrators of corruption.

To ensure that the works begin within 90 days of the issue of the work order, get the work completed within the time specified in the contract and settle the bills of the contractors within the time-frame of contractual agreement.

Police:

To fill all the vacancies in the police department from time to time on priority basis.

To increase recruitment of women in Police Force to 33% of the total strength with at least 1% reservation for Gender Minorities.

To provide special allowance of Rs 5000 per month to police officials on night duty and one month's extra pay per year.

To establish separate Police Welfare Centres at every district to take care of the welfare of the serving and retired police along the lines of Military Welfare Centres.

To provide housing to all the police personnel within five years.

To build new police stations and renovate all existing ones with better facilities and technological Tools.

To remodel existing police stations into child friendly police stations across the state based on the guidelines released by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).

To establish fully equipped Cyber Police Station in each district.

To establish a seed fund of Rs.200 crores to create infrastructure in Cyber Crimes and financial investigations.

LAW AND JUSTICE

To setup a dedicated fund of Rs 2000 crore to modernise all the existing courts of the state.

To establish an advanced forensic university in Kanakapura.

To repeal all unjust laws and other anti-people laws passed by the BJP government within one year of coming to power.

To establish Special fast track courts for the trial of terrorism cases and heinous crimes like rape, acid attack on women etc. and create a system.

To frame the policy to strictly control the on-line loan apps, within 100 days.

To reduce registration fee concerning Gift & Will on landed property within the family .

To implement the Right to Information Act in toto.

To enact a Karnataka Whistleblowers Protection Act.

The Congress Party is committed to take firm and decisive action against individuals and organisations spreading hatred amongst communities on grounds of caste or religion. We believe that law and Constitution is sacrosanct and can not be violated by individuals and Organisations like Bajrang Dal, PFI or others promoting enmity or hatred, whether among majority or minority
communities. We will take decisive action as per law including imposing a ban on any such organisations.

Regional and Rural Development

To set up high-speed WiFihotspots in every Panchayath.

Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj Scheme - To invest Rs. 50 thousand crores in five years to improve facilities in villages, to provide clean drinking water, sanitation, basic education, health and all weather roads.

To construct 1 recharge pond for 10 households to ensure efficient rainwater harvesting in rural areas.

To construct 2 biomethanation plants per taluka to treat waste efficiently.

To establish and strengthen the recycling plants in each Panchyath.

To increase the grants to Taluk and Grama Panchayats.

To take up on priority black tapping of the existing jelly Roads and make Mud-
Roads as motorable pukka roads.

To ensure all Talukas are connected to each other through state highways.

Urban Development

To extend Bengaluru's TenderSURE road model to cities with a population more than 10 Lakh.

To take up construction of apartments with all facilities, regularise all slums, provide them title deeds and re name the slums as Shramika Vasathi Samuchhaya

Recycling of water - Water treatment plants in Raja-Kaluves to generate clean water for secondary use, electricity and produce compost.

To prepare a master-plan and implement Garbage Clearance Projects and to recycle it as a resource of energy, manure and other products. [wealth from waste]

To provide 50 per cent subsidy to promote rain harvesting.

To amend Karnataka Apartment Ownership Act, 1972 to provide for conveyance of property and land to group of owners.

To develop an aerotropolis each around Mangalore, Hubli, Belagavi, and Mysore airport.

To frame rules to double the FAR for buildings in II tier cities to enterprises which generate employment.

To simplify the rules of TDR to help the land losers who gave land to Developmental Projects.

To bring suitable amendments to Building Bye-laws.

Agriculture and farming - Farmer friendly programmes

Krishi Sarvodaya Nidhi - To allocate Rs.1.50 lakh crores in five years for modernization of agriculture, subsidy, loan and insurance.

To increase interest-free soft loans to the farmers from Rs. 3 lakhs to 10 lakhs and with minimum interest of 3% upto Rs.15 lakhs and to reimburse the differential interest by Government.

"Krishi Unnathi Nidhi"- Loans to encourage start-ups and innovation in agricultural produce and allied sectors with seed money of Rs.500 crores.

To promote Agro based village industries run by rural women by investing Rs.200 crores.

To increase supply of 3 Phase electricity to the rural formers to 8 hours during the day time.

To establish one food processing park with storage facilities in each Assembly constituency.

To repeal the anti-farmer laws enacted by BJP Government and to withdraw all politically motivated cases against farmers.

To establish one Farmers' Mall each in all districts.

Savayava Saradaara Yojane to promote Organic farming investing Rs.2500 crores in five years.

A new development board "Negila Tuditha" with seed money of Rs.500 crores.

To focus on landless agricultural labourers and tenant farmers.

Jala Chethana Andolana - 100% subsidy to drip and sprinkler irrigation

Toreintroduce subsidy for installation of solar pump-sets with 75% of the cost as subsidy.

To promote Agro based village industries run by rural women by investing Rs.200 crores.

Karnataka State Centre of Excellence in Dry Land farming in Bidar/Kalburgi.

Institute of Research on Minor forest produces in Chamarajanagara.

To ensure proper supply of Agriculture Inputs and Farm Mechanization at every Panchayat Level.

To form self-help group for rural agriculturist women and provide Rs.3 lakhs interest free revolving loan.

To create Prakruthi Vikopa Nidhi - a permanent fund - by creating an initial corpus fund of Rs.5000 crores.

To set up Krishi Kosha centres for Women farmers in Raitha Mitra Kendras for skill development.

To evolve and bring out proper project to solve man-animal conflict in agricultural areas.

To offer reasonable compensation during drought and famine situations for the loss of agricultural produce. To postpone the recovery of distressed loans and waive complete interest

To establish major Agro Based Industry and a Cotton Export, Research and Marketing Centre in Gadag.

To setup a Rice Research Centre at Sindhanuru.

To establish Ethanol Production centres at Bagalkot, Belagavi, Mandya and other sugarcane producing districts.

To strengthen pepper processing units in Kodagu and Chikamagalur districts.

To establish an advanced floriculture research centre in Doddaballapura.

To encourage Bee-keeping by farmers - Allotment of Rs.50 crores.

To resolve the the Sharavathi Backwater rehabilitation issue on priority.

To give special package of Rs.25 crores subsidy for Rubber.

To bring amendment to Forest Act to solve forest dwellers problems.

To provide possession certificates to the famers of Malnad.

To provide Godowns to store farmers' durable produce and give 6 months' mortgage loan.

To establish an Agriculture Price Commission in each revenue division.

Horticulture

To establish Mango Processing Centres in Srinivaspura, Kolar district.

To provide subsidy for wine brewing and export.

To create a brand for Coffee in Karnataka.

To set up Research/Innovation Marketing system to encourage cultivation of Flowers like Mallige, fruits and vegetables unique to the respective regions. Allotment Rs.200 crores.

Sericulture

To Clear all dues and timely payment to cocoon farmers.

To provide Rs 3 lakh interest-free loans to all silk yarn reelers

Dairy Development and Animal Husbandry:

Pashu Bhagya - To give loans upto Rs.3 lakhs at zero interest to dairy farmers to purchase superior Cow/Buffalo breed.

Ksheeradhare- To increase the per litre milk subsidy for all dairy farmers from
Rs.5toRs.7/-.

To establish a Nandini Dairy Technology polytechnics in each division.

Ksheera Kranti Credit Cards - To provide all dairy farmers with Ksheera

Kranthi Credit Cards with a credit limit of Rs.50,000.

Runamuktha Kurigahi Yojane: To waive the Loan upto Rs 1 lakh of all sheep
and goat rearing farmers.

To purchase cow-dung @Rs.3/- per KG and establish compost/manure centers in villages involving rural women/Youth.

To provide interest-free loans to women to buy 2 cows or buffalos.

To frame separate law to prevent the atrocities on nomadic shepherds.

Fisheries Blue Economy.

"Matysa Sarvodaya Nidhi" - To establish a Rs 5000 Crore fund to improve the fishing sector as a whole.

To provide interest-free loans of up to Rs 3 lakhs to fisherwomen.

To Build Country's largest Boat Building Yard in Mangalore

Mathsya Asha Kirana Yojane - To provide Rs 6,000 to all the marine fishermen asalean period allowance during the fishing holiday.

To double the number of existing cold storage units available for fisheries.

Matsya Mahithi Kendra - To establish a state-of-the-art satellite mapping centre

To arrange dredging at the points of anchorages in the jetties/ports or places where the fishing boats are being anchored.

To ensure that existing Minor Ports in Karnataka are managed sustainably.

To maintain the health of natural fishing ports by strengthening an Integrated

Coastal Management Committee.

"Matsya Ashraya Yojane" - Ensure Housing to all economically disadvantaged fishermen.