With the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections 2017, a lot of people were eagerly waiting for the release of the manifesto by the Samajwadi Party's National President and the Honorable Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Shri. Akhilesh Yadav. On Sunday, 22nd January, UP CM Akhilesh Yadav released the 32-page manifesto while addressing a large crowd in Lucknow.
While the above points are the overview of the manifesto, let us have a detailed look at what UP CM Akhilesh Yadav promises to work on during the next 5 years:
Initiatives for Farming
UP CM Akhilesh Yadav firmly believes that the development of the state and the country is impossible and incomplete without the welfare of the farmers. Having undertaken various measures for the benefits farmers during the past 5 years, here are the new initiatives that are planned for the next tenure:
- Availability of loans to farmers at cheaper rates for buying seeds, fertilizers etc. Appropriate pricing for the yield of farmers along with the modernization of the markets with related facilities.
- Providing water to the Bundelkhand area which would enable them to harvest twice a year along with modernised gardening facilities.
- Implementation of solar-power enabled cold storage facilities. Measures for safeguarding the stock of the farmers.
- Seeds, fertilizers, and medicines would be provided to farmers at subsidised rates through Gram Panchayat level and related government bodies.
- Provision for exporting fruits and vegetables to the international markets by motivating the Green House facilities. Appropriate marketing techniques would be implemented for the yields of the farmers from the low-land areas.
- A boost to organic farming across the state, initially the Hamirpur district has been chosen for its implementation, it would also be implemented across all the districts of Bundelkhand.
- A new crop insurance scheme would be introduced for the farmers. For small and marginal farmers, a one-time registration process for the land records would be provided for free.
- To reduce and curb the problems of land disputes, appropriate land-marking techniques would be implemented with the help of latest technologies. Applications for the measurement and partition for the farmer's lands would be processed within the 3 months at no cost.
- The amount of the Farmer Insurance Scheme would be raised till 3.5 lac INR. Provisions for reducing the interest rates on the Farmers Credit Cards.
Irrigation and Flood Prevention Facilities
- Special regulatory measures would be taken so that farms receive the allocated volumes of water through irrigation.
- Provisions would be made to move Dark Blocks (categorized on ground water availability) out of that segment. The facilities of the state-run water disbursal would be made more efficient.
- Focused planning and implementation of irrigation for the drought-prone area of Bundelkhand.
Advancements in Milk Production and Animal Husbandry
- To enable an increase in milk production, the Kamdhenu, Mini Kamdhenu, and Micro Kamdhenu schemes would be expanded.
- The capacity of chilling plants in the state would be doubled for making the milk storage facilities more efficient and impactful.
- A dedicated power line 102/108 would be set up for the dealing with the emergency medical situations of livestock animals.
- Dedicated veterinary hospitals would be established in every district along with the technology advancements of the milk production houses.
Emphasis on Quality Education
- Colleges and universities would be provided with Wi-Fi and special bus services would commence for Universities and top colleges.
- Arrangements of admission for children from economically weaker sections to reputed private schools and special scholarships would be granted to the meritorious students for the higher education.
- The required number of teachers would be made available in the primary schools to maintain the correct student-teacher ratio. Apart from this, the teachers would be imparted training regularly as well there would be a grading system for the teachers to track their performance.
- There would be improvements in the mid-day meal schemes to ensure the health of children for proper education.
- Ensuring the required facilities like furniture, laboratories and sanitation in the higher educational institutions. With the help of Information Technology, enabling world-class education even to the students from the remote areas.
Healthcare Reforms
- The number of 108 ambulances would be increased and will come integrated with 'Mobile Advance Life Support Systems' and 'Mobile Medical Units'.
- To provide proper treatment for critical diseases like Cancer to people from the weaker sections of the society, new health insurance schemes would be implemented.
- Blood banks would be established in every district to prevent any loss of life in the emergency situations.
- The number of female nurses would be increased and 24-hour electricity would be made available to the district hospitals.
- The 'Mohalla Clinics Schemes' would be initiated and there would be at least one super-speciality hospital present in every district. In every district hospital, ICU and Ventilator facilities would be made mandatory.
- The total costs for treatments of people having an annual income below Rs. 1,50,000 would be borne by the government.
- To handle extreme health emergency cases, Air Ambulances would be deployed at the Lucknow Airport.
Minority Welfare Schemes
- Strong focus on maintaining the security and religious independence of minorities.
- Reservation for minorities in all the beneficiary schemes according to their proportion of the total population.
- At least 1 lac small and medium scale businesses would be initiated for the minorities in the next 5 years.
- Career Counselling schemes would be commenced to impart them training for jobs and employment. Also, dedicated 'Excellence Centres' would provide technical skills.
- Promoting formal education among minorities, also imparting recognition for educational institutions run by them. The Shia-Sunni 'Waqf board' would be recognized as an Independent Board.
- The existing Vittiya Vikas Nigam (Financial Growth Corporation) for minorities would be made more efficient and effective.
- A library of international standards would be set up in the Muhammad Ali Jauhar University.
- To remember and honour the freedom fighters from the minority communities, special memorials would be established along with the beautification of the existing ones.
- To enable a smoother Haj Pilgrimage, Haj House has been established in Varanasi.
Roads Development
- The projects already initiated by the state government would be completed latest by the end of next 2 years.
- Similar to the Lucknow and Agra Expressway, Samajwadi Purvanchal Expressway would be built in record time to connect with Purvanchal. Also, two new green field expressways would be initiated to connect Bundelkhand with Tarai and Lucknow with Nepal respectively.
- Similarly, a 552 KM 6 lane expressway would be connecting Jhansi-Mahoba-Sultanpur, a 303 KM lane entry control expressway would be connecting Bijnaur-Muradabad-Fatehgad.
- Out of the 75 districts, 50 district headquarters have been connected with four-lane roads, the remaining 25 district headquarters would be connected very soon.
- The adjoining areas of Lucknow, Kanpur, Allahabad and Varanasi would be joined with the Cycle Highways.
Availability of Electricity
- All the villages where electricity is not available would be provided with round the clock uninterrupted supply of electricity. The existing electricity infrastructure would be revamped wherever required.
- The personal costs incurred by the farmers related to electricity in irrigation would be taken care by the government.
- Giving special emphasis on solar energy, the power generation would be increased for household purposes and solar systems would be implemented for powering the street lights.
Urban Development
- On the lines of Lucknow, even Noida, Gaziabad, Kanpur, Meerut, Agra and Varanasi would see the commencement of metro projects very soon. The major cities of Uttar Pradesh would be connected by the modes of air transport.
- The Green fields township by the state government at the selected locations would have all the modern amenities and facilities.
- For low-income and middle-class families, 'Value for Money' homes would be available at cheap rates consisting of at least 2 rooms.
- The places with historical heritage in areas like the Old Lucknow and other places would be given the required maintenance and beautification. Riverfronts would be developed in Allahabad, Varanasi, Bareilly, Hindon, Muradabad and Agra.
- Upvan Parks would be built in all the districts taking inspiration from Gyaneshwar Mishra Park. A theme park and a Mughal library would be built in Agra, a six-storeyed library would be built in Lucknow too.
Rural Development
- Villages would be developed in the clusters of smart villages consisting of solar energy, rain water conservation and connection with the main highways following the Cycle Highways model.
- Rural employment and social development centers would be developed in all the villages.
- To encourage sports in rural areas, various initiatives like the Indian Gramin Cricket League (IGCL) would be implemented at the village levels.
- To enable better commuting, Lohiya Bus Service would be expanded to each and every village. Also, the number of beneficiaries under the Lohiya Aawas Scheme would be doubled.
- Special awareness programmes about the land regulation would be created for students completed their secondary schools and Gyaneshwar Mishra Gram Vikas scheme would be expanded to benefit more people.
Social Welfare Schemes
- Under the Samajwadi Pension Scheme, around 1 crore families would be given a monthly pension of Rs. 1000. Priority households would be given wheat and rice for free.
- The current schemes of providing poor women with pressure cookers and Ghee/Milk Powders to children from poor households would continue.
- Minimum wages for labourers would be set up and regulations for maintaining the well-being of household help would be implemented.
- Widows, Disabled people, Senior Citizens would be able to travel free on the UPSRTC.
- To tackle social problems, Uttar Pradesh Nyaay Ayog would be set up. There would be a dedicated call centre to address the concerns of Senior Citizens.
- Old Age homes would be built for senior citizens and a host of other initiatives like Samajwadi Shravan Yatra would be implemented for their welfare.
Women Safety and Empowerment
- Free cycles would be given to girls studying between 9th and 12th std, and table lamps would be awarded to meritorious students. Dedicated hostels would be built for women working in cities.
- Rs. 2 lac would be provided as a compensatory help to girls who lose their parents or husband or meet with an accident leading to disability.
- Special fast track courts would be established to curb the menace the crimes against women. To promote self-employment among women, loan would be given at reduced interest rates.
- Security Training Centres and Dedicated Women Police stations would be built in all the districts.
- To ensure proper menstrual hygiene in rural areas, free sanitary napkins would be provided via PHC/CHC. The frequency of the free ambulance 102 would be increased.
- For the safety of women, the dedicated power line 1090 would be expanded and initiatives like the Rani Laxmibai Award would be promoted even more.
- All the women would be able to travel for free on E-Rickshaws and for half the price on roadways bus services.
Law and Administration
- UP 100, a historic feat where the police can reach the victim within minutes on a single call, has already been implemented in all the 75 district villages. The number of vehicles would be increased even more and two-wheelers greater in number than the four-wheelers would be incorporated.
- Women Power Line 1090, which saw tremendous response and results since its commencement, would be expanded in all the district villages.
- To develop and improve cordial relations between the public and the police, special initiatives would be devised and promote Friendly Policing.
- Specific provisions would be devised for road accident cases.
- Women safety would be given special priority by relevant mechanisms.
Special Impetus to Business
- To increase the 'Ease of Doing Business' index, special steps would be taken on ground so that the business community gets permissions and clearance online. The majority of regulatory processes would be made online, thereby reducing the hassles.
- The traditional 'Inspector Raj' would end thus minimizing the inconveniences faced by the business community. 'Single Window Clearance System', would be one of the major steps to achieve the same objective.
- A special boost would be given to increase business opportunities in the areas of Bundelkhand and Purvanchal, ultimately creating employment opportunities. District Level Officials would be given the dedicated responsibility of ensuring the safety of the businessmen and merchants.
- Banks would be directed to open ATM's in rural areas, failing which they would face punitive actions.
- Hasthship Development Park would be developed in Kannauj and Varanasi would get a Saree Design Centre.
Wildlife and Nature Conservation
- A wildlife sanctuary for tigers and elephants would be developed in the terai zone of Uttar Pradesh. A Wildlife Conservation centre would be established in Etawah.
- Students from primary to secondary levels would be given education for nature and wildlife conservation. The study revolving around this would be given the status of a special subject and importance.
- Educationalists and Universities who would contribute remarkably in increasing the awareness about nature conservation would be given monetary rewards and recognition.
- Water coming from various sources and entering the natural water bodies would be monitored for contamination levels.
- Special initiatives would be taken to monitor the underground speed of water in the natural bodies and appropriate measures would be taken to control them.
Boost to Tourism
- A specific model would be implemented to increase the tourism in the state. It would be targeted to encourage tourism as a business and its advantages for the local communities.
- Eco-Friendly products would be promoted through various channels which would boost the local handloom and the handicraft businesses. There would also be a collaboration with the specific welfare groups and organisations enabling the same purpose.
- Monetary benefits would be given to the section of people from arts, music, dance fraternity who would contribute to enlighten the local cultural heritage.
- The government would implement Nature Guide Training intended towards rural livelihood mission through the medium of Tourism Business.
Information Technology
- The Samajwadi Digital Campaign would be initiated which would collectively aim for the availability of laptops, smartphones, free Wi-Fi in cities, Smart villages and Smart Government Interface etc.
- Meritorious students would continue to receive laptops from the government for enhancing their technical skills.
- To make the general public digitally aware and active, free smartphones would be provided to people under the Samajwadi Smartphone Scheme.
Youth Welfare and Skill Development
- To make the youth job ready, special Skill Development Centres would be incubated.
- For fostering the spirit of Business and Employment among the youth, Entrepreneurship Development and Startup programmes would be initiated which would impart the necessary skills of business, technical infrastructure, marketing linkages and business loans at a reduced rate of interests.
- Youth associated with sports in the state would be provided with the necessary training and special considerations in the job.
- Samajwadi Sports School would be established to motivate and train the students who are talented in sports. Special Sports Centres would be established in the respective zones of the state.
Schemes for Advocates
- Samajwadi Party is the first party to have implemented special schemes for the Advocate community in the state budget.
- Young Advocates would be given monthly monetary benefits.
- In the case of deaths of advocates below 60 years of age, their families would receive a compensation of Rs. 10 lacs.
- To fulfil the housing needs of Advocates, Group Housing Schemes would be launched.
Miscellaneous Schemes
- The government missionaries and officials would be improved for serving the people in a better way. The inefficiencies associated with the implementation of schemes under the central government like mid-day meals, aanganwadi etc would be dealt pro-actively with utmost priority.
- Watchman, Homeguards, PRD Jawans would get an increase in their wages. The officials at the village level government bodies like Lekhpal, Sipahi, Village Development Officers, Gram Panchayat Officers would be given the opportunity for development and promotions in their respective fields.
- Money related to all the monetary welfare schemes would be directly credited to the accounts of the beneficiaries.
- Families of the soldiers and security personnel in the service of the nation would be given appropriate facilities and security. Sainik Kalyan Nigam would be strengthened further.
The above points clearly reflect the ongoing developmental attitude of the Samajwadi Party under the leadership of UP CM Akhilesh Yadav. The last assembly elections gave a complete majority to the SP, and UP CM Akhilesh Yadav during the release of the Election 2017 manifesto, appeared very confident that the people of Uttar Pradesh would elect him to power again and give him a chance to serve them for the next 5 years.