Kharge’s statements on Congress guarantees exposes hollowness

While addressing party leaders in Bengaluru on Thursday, the AICC chief urged the party to announce guarantees aligned with the State budget. This warning seems to reflect lessons learned from the situation in Telangana, where the Congress government has only fulfilled a few promises, such as free bus travel for women and raising the Rajiv Arogyasri coverage to Rs. 10 lakh, while many other commitments remain unfulfilled.

Hyderabad: AICC Chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s recent statement asking party units to announce guarantees only according the State budget has exposed the hollowness of the Congress government’s commitment in implementing the six guarantees assured to the people in the State, making it clear that the promises were made with no idea of how to implement them. And the results are being seen in Telangana, where the Congress government is struggling to keep its word.

The AICC chief while addressing party leaders in Bengaluru on Thursday had asked the party to announce guarantees according to the State budget. The party chief’s warning appears to be a lesson learnt from what is happening in Telangana, where except for a few promises like free bus travel to women and increasing coverage under Rajiv Arogyasri to Rs.10 lakh, the Congress government is yet to implement many promises.

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The government’s claims of implementing the 200 units free power supply to households, Rs.500 LPG cylinders, job recruitment and crop loan waiver scheme were all implemented only partially and that too, with multiple terms and conditions bringing down the number of beneficiariesFor instance, initially the government had announced that the crop loan waiver would be completed in one installment but it was being done in three installments. Though the government claims to have spent Rs.17,869 crore towards the scheme, nearly 20 lakh farmers are still waiting to get their loans waived.

Before the Assembly elections, the Congress had promised more, right from one tola of gold along with financial assistance under the Kalyana Lakshmi scheme to a monthly assistance of Rs.2,500 to women, enhanced financial assistance for farmers under Rythu Bharosa, monthly honorarium of Rs.4,000 to unemployed youth, Vidya Bharosa Card of Rs.5 lakh for students and enhanced pensions up to Rs.4,000 for senior citizens and so on.

Likewise, under the Rythu Bharosa scheme, Rs.15,000 per acre was promised to both farmers and tenant farmers. This apart, farm labourers were promised Rs.12,000. Neither was the Rythu Bharosa implemented nor was the Rs.10,000 assistance that farmers used to get under Rythu Bandhu in the past being extended.

It may be recalled that even before the Karnataka government could present its annual budget in July early this year, the State Finance department had cautioned about the finances in June. A note was reportedly circulated from the Karnataka’s Finance department in which Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) I.S.N. Prasad (since retired) stated that it was “imperative to close many of the ongoing schemes to accommodate the new guarantee schemes”. The note also asked departmental heads to identify ongoing schemes, which could be “reduced in scope” and “non-priority ongoing schemes which can be dropped”.