Cong rewrites manifesto for Orissa: rice at Re 1 a kg

The Congress had to reduce the price of rice for poor in its manifesto after CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat on Saturday mocked party president Sonia Gandhi’s promise of rice at Rs 3 a kg when most of the states,including Orissa,were already supplying rice to the poor at Rs 2 a kg. Bagrodia said though the national manifesto of the Congress had promised rice at Rs 3 a kg,the party would adopt a different pricing strategy for the people of Orissa.

Only last week,the BJP had promised rice to the poorer sections of Orissa at Re 1 a kg,dal at Rs 5 a kg and salt free of cost.

In Orissa,rice is the staple diet for the 40 per cent-odd BPL people. Cheap rice for poor was an idea which Chief Minister and BJD chief Naveen Patnaik exploited well last year when he started supplying rice procured from the Centre through the Public Distribution System (PDS) at the rate of Rs 2 a kg. The scheme covered 55 lakh families and Naveen became popular with his photo smiling away from the banners at every fair price shop. The scheme paid huge dividends in last year and this year’s civic polls as the BJD managed to beat its former ally BJP by a mile.

Apart from its promise of cheap rice,the Congress manifesto also assured pension to almost all sections of society. It promised all 60-plus adult men and 55-plus women old-age allowances,increase in disability pension,from Rs 200 a month to Rs 400,monthly pension for spinsters and divorced women and pension for small and marginal farmers,landless farmers and physically disabled farmers. The manifesto also promised houses to all BPL families under the Indira Awas Yojana and mediclaim. It promised free education to children from BPL families. The party,which has been raising hell over the lack of transparency in signing of MoUs by the state Government,said that if it came to power,all memorandums of understanding with corporate houses would be reviewed.

Orissa PCC chief K P Singh Deo,who was present at the manifesto release function,said he would not contest the Lok Sabha and the Assembly polls. “I was made PCC chief to oversee the poll preparations of the party,” he said. The Congress has nominated Chandrakanti Tripathy from Singh Deo’s Dhenkanal Lok Sabha constituency. Shatrughan Jena has been given a ticket from Kamakhyanagar Assembly constituency.