The Congress government in Karnataka will be implementing the five guarantees, which the party had promised in its manifesto for the May 10 polls, in the current financial year, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said Friday.
Siddaramaiah made the announcement after he chaired a Cabinet meeting Friday morning. He said the five schemes will be rolled out in a phased manner after identifying the beneficiaries and processing the applications wherever required.
“We promised to deliver these guarantees soon after the Cabinet meeting and we will walk the talk on this promise,” said Siddaramiah.
Soon after he formed the government two weeks ago, the CM had promised to implement the five schemes after he held the first Cabinet meeting. Friday’s Cabinet meeting was his first full-fledged one.
The roll-out plan
Gruha Jyothi: The scheme to provide 200 units free electricity per month to domestic households, including tenants, will be implemented from July 1, the CM said. Under the scheme, the free power will be given based on the users’ consumption pattern in the last 12 months. For example, if a household has consumed 100 units of electricity on an average in the last 12 months, the user will be entitled to 100 units of free electricity up to 200 units every month this year. The government has also provided a buffer of 10% from the 200-unit cap, to avoid problems. However, the arrears till July have to be borne by users.
Gruha Lakshmi: The costliest of all schemes accounting for 50% of the total expenditure, Gurha Lakshmi, which offers Rs 2,000 per month to women heads of family, will be implemented from August 15, the CM said. He said applications can be submitted from June 15 to July 15. The scheme will be applicable to both BPL and APL card holders, he added. Women availing social security, old age or disability pension are also eligible.
As an Independence Day ‘gift’, the government aims to release Rs 2,000 to the beneficiaries from August 15.
Anna Bhagya: Under the scheme, 10 kg of food grains will be given to every member of a BPL household and Antyodaya card holders from July 1. This will include the 5 kg of free food grains that was given under the previous BJP government.
Shakti Yojana: From June 1 women and transgenders can travel for free in government buses, other than in luxury, AC classes. The scheme applies to all four transport corporations (including BMTC and KSRTC) and for travel only within Karnataka. To identify the beneficiaries, the government will also roll out ‘zero sum’ passes to women during journeys. It has also reserved 50% of seats for men in KSRTC and removed any sort of reservation in BMTC buses.
Yuva Nidhi: Unemployed youngsters who graduated in 2022-23, will be provided an unemployment dole of Rs 3,000, and diploma holders Rs 1,500 — for 24 months from the date of registration, the CM said. With just around five lakh beneficiaries, this Nidhi scheme is the cheapest among the five guarantees. The graduates will also be given 6 months of grace period to find employment.
Although the Chief Minister did not disclose the expenditure that the five schemes will incur, sources in the government have pegged their annual cost at Rs 50,000 – Rs 60,000 crore.
“I will not discuss the financial modalities now. I will present all the details during the budget session in July,” Siddaramiah said.
Reacting to the CM’s announcement, senior BJP leader and former CM Basavaraj Bommai accused the Congress of “cheating the public”. “The government is not going to give 200 units of free power (under Gruha Jyothi)…they will take into account the one year average power consumption and will give free electricity upto 10 per cent more than the average usage. They just cheated the public and they could have told this before elections,” he said.
Commenting on the Anna Bhagya scheme, he said, “During elections they said that 10kg rice would be given. The Central government already gives 5kg rice and the state government will give 5kg. Will the 10kg announced by the state government include Ragi and Jowar and besides what the Centre gives?”
State BJP unit chief Nalin Kumar Kateel said he welcomed the guarantees but asked the government to issue “a white paper on the cost the schemes would incur”.
Meanwhile, Karnataka apart, the Congress is also aiming to replicate the schemes for political dividends in other poll-bound states as well, it is learnt.
A Congress leader told The Indian Express the party will be highlighting the Karnataka schemes and their success stories in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Poll strategist Sunil Kanugolu, who was recently appointed as adviser to the CM, is likely to build a narrative around the success stories and take it forward in the other states, the leader added.
Speaking to Indian Express, BS Shivanna, general secretary of Congress admitted that Sunil was appointed keeping in mind Madhya Pradesh and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
“If you go back, in 2013 when Siddaramaiah became CM, he managed to fulfil all the promises of the manifesto. But we need to admit that we were unable to inform and convince the public while at the same time BJP propelled its social media, setting a communal narrative. We do not want to repeat that mistake. Sunil will be helping to plan and promote the government programmes to counter the BJP in the state and even at the Centre. It can set a narrative for the next Lok Sabha polls,” Shivannna said.
After the special Cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah – who held a press conference at Vidhana Soudha – said the government will implement all the guarantees gradually. (Express photo) 
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