With just a few days left for the first phase of Lok Sabha elections, on April 19, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unveiled its election manifesto, on Sunday, April 14.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president JP Nadda, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and other senior party members were present at the launch of the manifesto christened Sankalp Patra, at the party headquarters in Delhi.
The day also marked the birth anniversary of B R Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution. The opposition, it may be mentioned, has been accusing the BJP of disregarding the Constitution.
“Our focus is on Nivesh se Naukri, our manifesto is the reflection of India’s youth. We have proved that we have delivered on what we promised,” the Prime Minister said.
The BJP reiterated its stand on bringing a Uniform Civil Code, drawing upon the best traditions and harmonising them with the modern times.
Some takeaways from the manifesto are:-
Ram Legacy
The party plans to launch a global outreach programme for documenting the legacy of Lord Ram across the world. "We will celebrate Ramayan Utsav with great fervour across the globe to commemorate the Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla," the manifesto read.
Health
Every senior citizen over the age of 70 years will be covered under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme. The transgender community will also be under the ambit of the scheme.
Food and Agriculture
Free ration scheme will continue for the next five years, said the Prime Minister. The party also plans to launch the National Mission on natural farming to promote remunerative agriculture for food and nutrition security. Digital Public Infrastructure will also be developed to remove information asymmetry in agriculture and provide farmers solutions and services.
Employment
"On one hand, we have talked about creating a large number of jobs through building infrastructure. On the other hand, we are focusing on high value services by promoting startups and global centres," said Modi. “Bharat's top-tier startup ecosystem will be expanded to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. "Further, we will transform Bharat into a global centre for high quality services including tourism to generate high value and diverse employment opportunities nationwide," he said.
Women
The manifesto guarantees to bring forward three crore more Lakhpati Didis. It aims to bring more awareness on cervical cancer, increased number of washrooms for women and the implementation of the Mahila Shakti Vandan Act.
Economy
The party aims to make the nation the third largest economy in the world. It set the goal of making India a “global manufacturing hub". The party reiterated its commitment to increasing employment, self-employment, and the enhancement of livelihood opportunities for the citizens.
Infrastructure
For social infrastructure, the BJP plans to open new education institutes, universities and medical colleges. For physical infrastructure, it aims at modernising highways, railways, airways and waterways.
