PUTTING POOR
FIRST
All BPL families to get 35 kg of rice or wheat every month at Rs 2
per kg. This will be available against Food Coupons redeemable both
at PDS and private outlets.
Ensure farm loans at a maximum interest rate of 4 percent.
Waive agricultural loans.
Introduce a Farm Income Insurance Scheme through which both price
and produce will be insured
Irrigate 35 million hectares of additional farmland within 5 years.
Initiate special schemes for the urban poor, such as loans at 4
percent interest to poor vendors.
Set up a "Workers Bank" to provide a safety net for
unorganized sector workers.
Revise minimum wages and ensure strict implementation of the Wages
Act.
ECONOMY GROWS, INDIA PROSPERS
Generate employment through massive public spending on
infrastructure projects. Complete the implementation of Shri Atal
Bihari Vajpayee's dream projects: National Highway Development
Project by building 15-20 km of new highways every day; and Pradhan
Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, to link all villages with over 500 people
by all-weather road.
Introduce schemes to encourage private industry and services
sectors. Ensure a low tax, low interest rate regime.
Exempt personal Income Tax for those earning upto Rs 3 lakh per
annum. For women & Senior Citizens, exemption will be Rs 3.5
lakh per annum. This will benefit over 3.5 crore people.
Complete exemption for interest income on bank deposits for all
other than corporates and those who have business income.
Scrap Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT), which is a source of harassment to
employees and employers alike.
Abolish CST and fix a ceiling of 12-14 percent on GST.
Ensure watertight monitoring of regulatory bodies so that the
public is secured from companies indulging in fraudulent practices
in the stock markets.
Construct 10,00,000 housing units / year for the poor; kick-start
the real estate sector that is suffering at present. Reduce interest
on housing loans to make urban housing affordable.
Take firm steps to identify and retrieve Indian money stashed away
in foreign banks. Estimated at Rs. 25 lakh crore-Rs. 75 lakh crore,
getting this amount back through international cooperation will be
enough to complete road and power connectivity throughout the
country; ensure setting up of quality schools in all villages. This
quantum of black money, if recovered, will amount to allocating Rs 4
crore to every Indian village to improve living conditions in the
countryside.
Boost tourism sector: Identify 50 destinations and develop
infrastructure, connectivity. Double foreign tourist arrivals in 5
years to help generate employment in hospitality industry.
Ban on foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail sector to help
domestic retail trade.
JAI JAWAN IN ACTION
All members of the armed forces and the para-military shall be
exempted from payment of Income Tax. This will benefit nearly 20
lakh people.
Take steps to set up a separate Pay Commission for the armed
forces. Also revisit the existing pay structure to ensure a better
deal.
Implement one-rank-one-pension.
Push State Governments to introduce better schemes for the
rehabilitation of ex-servicemen and explore avenues for resettling
them with gainful employment.
ENERGY SAVED,
ENERGY GAINED
Generate an additional 120,000 MW of electricity in 5 years through
speedy conclusion of ongoing projects while sanctioning new power
plants. 20% of this will be through harnessing non-conventional
energy sources.
Reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels by promoting renewable
energy options such as run-on-river electricity projects, solar,
wind power and biomass.
Secure energy needs through aggressive diplomatic and commercial
moves in oil-producing countries.
WOMEN
EMPOWERED, NATION STRENGTHENED
Introduce the Madhya Pradesh BJP Government's highly successful
'Ladli Lakshmi' Scheme throughout India to directly transfer funds
to the school going girl child to encourage education and secure
economic selfsufficiency for young women. Rs. 1.18 lakh after
completion of 12th standard.
Pave the way for nationwide implementation of the Bhamashah Scheme
proposed by the erstwhile BJP Government in Rajasthan to directly
pay Rs 1,500 to open a bank account for every adult woman, to be
accessed by biometric cards usable through fingerprint.
Provide bicycles to every school going girl child from BPL families
throughout India.
Introduce special schemes to promote entrepreneurship among rural
women through Self-help Groups (SHGs).
BJP remains committed to bring about 33 percent reservation for
women in legislatures and will endeavour to introduce it at the
earliest.
Salaries of 28 lakh Anganwadi workers and helpers, who are the
backbone of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) will be
doubled.
BJP believes all sections of Indian women cannot be fully empowered
without the enactment of a Uniform Civil Code as decreed in the
Directive Principles of the Constitution and emphasized repeatedly
by the Supreme Court. The party remains committed to implementing
such a code after discussions with all sections of opinion.
YOUNG
INDIA, NATION'S PILLAR
UPA has nurtured despair, frustration and joblessness among India's
young people who account for 50 percent of the population. BJP will
regenerate hope through massive vocational training programmes and
job creation schemes both in rural and urban areas.
A network of National Knowledge Incubation Centres will be set up
throughout the country to identify and groom young talent for every
sector of the economy.
Study loans will be made cheaper and more accessible by fixing
student loan interest at 4%.
BJP will create 12 million IT-enabled jobs in rural areas. Computer
prices will be drastically cut to make it affordable to every
section. All educational institutions will have internet facilities
within 5 years. Broadband connectivity to every village.
Special provisions will be made for SC/ST/OBC and other
underprivileged sections of the youth for skill development with
focus on web-based training.
Launch an aggressive project to groom young sporting talent by
allocating Rs 5,000 crore for creation of sports infrastructure
especially in educational institutions Appoint trained coaches;
secure employment for international medal winners. Sport will be a
compulsory subject in school curricula.
NATION'S
WEALTH, PEOPLE'S HEALTH
BJP is committed to making the right to clean water a fundamental
right. A massive programme will be launched to provide clean,
drinking water to every citizen.
A regulatory authority to be set up for private hospitals and
nursing homes to monitor unfair practices.
A comprehensive project to bring health-for-all by 2014.
Introduce a mandatory 'Dial 108 for ambulance at your doorstep'
scheme throughout the country.
Revive the creation of new AIIMS, originally initiated by the NDA
Government but neglected by UPA. All six state-of-the-art hospitals
will be rapidly constructed over the next 5 years.
Janani Suraksha Yojana to care for delivering mothers and infants
will be strengthened.
Investment will be made to promote alternative medicine such as
Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani etc. 8. Population stabilization holds the key
to India's prosperity. BJP will introduce schemes in consultation
with different sections to expedite serious progress in this
direction.
PRIVILEGING THE UNDERPRIVILEGED
BJP is deeply committed to creating a society of equal
opportunities with Justice for All as its credo. Its State
Governments have introduced a series of schemes for Scheduled
Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Minorities - especially in education,
job training, poverty alleviation and promotion of entrepreneurial
talent. These schemes will be improved upon and the most successful
among them replicated nationally. In addition, people living in
backward regions, particularly in the North-East, inaccessible
forests and hilly areas will be prioritized.
Education and Job quota will be introduced for economically
backward sections of society other than SCs, STs and OBCs, for whom
reservations will continue.
SENIOR CITIZENS
Recognising the importance of Senior Citizens in nation-building &
inculcating civilisational values, BJP commits itself to reducing
the age for receiving travel benefits from 65 to 60 years.
Complete tax exemption to senior citizens in respect of pension
income.
CREATING THE RIGHT ENVIRONMENT
Combating climate change and global warming through non-polluting
technologies will be prioritized.
Importance given to programmes to arrest the melting of Himalayan
glaciers from which most major rivers in North India originate.
Protect and promote forests and afforestation.
Take all appropriate steps to save Tiger, the National Animal, and
safeguard critical habitants of all wildlife.
Emphasis to be laid on protecting India's resplendent but
endangered bio-diversity.
DEFENDING THE
CIVILISATION
The BJP remains committed to the construction of a grand Ram Mandir
at Ayodhya.
BJP will not allow anybody to touch the revered Ram Setu. We will
evolve a new route for Sethu Samudram bypassing Ram Setu.
Cleaning the revered Ganga and other major rivers will be a
priority. Local communities will be enrolled in this gigantic task.
Cow protection is an article of faith with BJP. This will be
pursued relentlessly.
Full nation integration is not possible as long as Article 370
stays on the statute books. BJP remains steadfast in its belief that
the provision must be removed to ensure Indian unity.
WAR
AGAINST ENEMIES WITHIN AND WITHOUT
BJP's robust commitment to securing the nation against its enemies
is well known. Our first priority will be to take stern steps
against terrorists, cross-border or home-grown. An improved
POTA-type law will be introduced. The intelligence mechanism shall
be overhauled. India's 4000-km long coastline will be fully
protected by enhanced naval security.
We will systematically detect, detain and deport illegal immigrants
who have emerged as a major source of homegrown terror. Fencing of
the India-Bangladesh border, deliberately neglected by the UPA in
pursuit of vote bank politics, will be speedily completed.
Use coercive diplomacy to isolate and compel countries engaging in
exporting terror across the border to stop their misadventure.
Ensure that the foreign tap of separatist groups in India is
completely turned off.
Wage a relentless war against Maoist groups throughout the country
using the highly successful and popular Chhattisgarh model.
Introduce a comprehensive National Identity Card for all citizens
of India.
CROSS BORDER TERRORISM
BJP is in favour of tough stand against terrorists irrespective of
which place they belong and whose support they enjoy. We are firmly
of the view that India is a victim of state sponsored terrorism by
Pakistan no matter whether they accept it or not. If voted to power
BJP will not hesitate in attacking the culprits in their den. Stern
action by Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee's Govt in Kargil stands witness
to our uncompromising stand against any intrusion and terrorism.
Shri Lal Krishna Advani, Home Minister in Shri Vajpayee's Govt
adopted a resolute stand in fight against terror in Kashmir and his
unflinching approach paid rich dividends too. We are ready to take
support of all the countries including US in our war against terror
but our mind is clear that finally it is our fight and we have to
fight it on our own.
Here are the steps that our Government will take to fight
cross border terrorism inside the country and outside
We will make a separate ministry/ department of internal security
to face the terror threat from within the country
POTA will be revived and if needed its provisions will be
strengthened further to create a legal deterrent
Police force will be upgraded and strengthened in terms of its
preparedness and availability of state of the art ammunition
A chain of authority and accountability will be made in civil and
police administration right till the district level to avoid
unforeseen developments
Intelligence structure will also be beefed up till the district
level to fix the plug the loopholes
A massive scheme will be launched to make border areas easily
approachable especially in hilly areas
New NSG centres and cantonment areas will be developed to enable
swift action against terrorist attacks
Neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutal will be
persuaded to dismantle the terrorist network on their soil. If they
agree we will not hesitate in launching joint operations for nabbing
the terrorists
Hurdles will be removed in the way of intelligence sharing with
neighbouring countries
SITUATION IN NORTH EAST
Situation in North Eastern states continues to be grim. Our
plan for North East will be following;
Strengthening the police and intelligence at the local level
To provide enough funds to local governments for good governance
To make remote areas approachable by road and air
Cooperation with the neighbouring countries in eliminating anti
India elements taking shelter there
Plugging the porous border
NAXALISM
BJP considers naxalism as a threat to country's internal security.
We will adopt a two pronged strategy in this regard. Develop the
naxal affected underdeveloped areas and removal of naxals by
empowering local residents. As per intelligence reports naxals have
also developed nexus with anti India forces outside the country. We
will launch an investigation into their funding network and cut the
supply lines.