Promise and forget: Congress hai toh aisa ich hota

This apart, a bonus of Rs.500 per quintal of paddy was assured. However, let alone the bonus, even the procurement of paddy has been in such a way that farmers from different areas are complaining

Hyderabad: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s claim on Sunday, that the State government was depositing Rs.2,500 into bank accounts of women in the State and that the Congress had implemented all of its six guarantees, have turned the focus on the authenticity of his claims, and in turn, the very credibility of the Congress party.

For the record, the Congress released its manifesto for Telangana ahead of the Assembly elections on November 17 last year. Apart from five declarations, including Warangal Rythu Declaration, Hyderabad Youth Declaration, Chevella SC, ST Declaration, Minority Declaration and Kamareddy BC Declaration, the manifesto also included the six guarantees titled Abhaya Hastham.

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The six guarantees also had 12 sub-category assurances. Apart from these, one major promise was the crop loan waiver for up to Rs.2 lakh, which Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had promised would be launched on December 9. The latest date given by him is August 15.

As for another vote puller, the Rs.4,000 monthly honorarium for the unemployed, made as part of the Hyderabad Youth Declaration, Congress leaders are in denial mode, with Mallu Vikramarka Bhatti even denying such a promise in the State Assembly.

Promise it, forget it:

The Congress Model The promises by the Congress, the Six Guarantees in particular, were a major factor behind the party’s victory in the Assembly polls. However, the enthusiasm with which the promises were made appears to be missing when it comes to keeping the promises and implementing them.

To begin with, under the Mahalakshmi scheme, women were promised a monthly financial assistance of Rs.2,500, LPG cylinders at Rs.500 and free travel in TSRTC buses.

Though the free bus travel and Rs.500 LPG cylinder schemes were launched, the Rs.2500 monthly financial assistance is pending. But according to Rahul Gandhi, Telangana’s women have been getting Rs.2,500 per month!

The LPG cylinders were promised to all households but later conditions were imposed limiting it to white ration card holders only. Among those pending are Rythu Bharosa, a tweaked version of K Chandrashekhar Rao’s Rythu Bandhu. Under the scheme, the Congress had promised Rs.15,000 per acre to farmers, tenant farmers, besides Rs.12,000 a year to agriculture labourers.

This apart, a bonus of Rs.500 per quintal of paddy was assured. However, let alone the bonus, even the procurement of paddy has been in such a way that farmers from different areas are complaining

As for Gruha Jyothi scheme, under which 200 units of free power supply were promised to all households, conditions were imposed restricting it to white ration card holders. One of the few schemes that were launched was the Indiramma Indlu scheme, which Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy launched at Bhadrachalam on March 11.

After the launch, during which he promised 4.50 lakh houses with a financial outlay of Rs.22,500 crore for the homeless poor, nothing much has progressed.

Rajiv Arogyasri was also launched, formally, by announcing that the health insurance was increased from Rs.5 lakh to Rs.10 lakh.

Among the unkept promises that have triggered emotional outbursts from the intended beneficiaries was the one promising all Telangana movement fighters a 250 square yard house site. Not one fighter got the house site even after the Congress government being in power for almost five months

Under Vidya Bharosa Card, financial assistance of Rs.5 lakh was assured to students. Telangana International Schools were to be built in every mandal. The scheme is yet to take off.

As part of Cheyutha, a monthly pension of Rs.4000 was to be provided to senior citizens, widows, disabled persons, beedi workers, single women, toddy tappers, weavers, AIDS and Filaria patients and kidney patients undergoing dialysis. Status: Still on paper.