Seven rights, 59 promises part of Congress manifesto

Seven rights -- to home, water, health, education, fertilizer, employment and minimum income -- and 59 promises, including five guarantees announced in May, were part of the Congress’ 106-page manifesto for Madhya Pradesh released on Tuesday, as the party continued to follow the template that worked for it in the Karnataka elections earlier this year, which it won.

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The five guarantees are monthly allowance of ₹1,500 to every woman in the state, cooking gas cylinder for ₹500 every month, free bus service for women, and free electricity up to 100 units and at 50% between 100 and 200 units every month, and restoration of the Old Pension Scheme for government employees.

Other promises include ₹25 lakh health insurance for all households and ₹10 lakh life insurance for all households; an IPL team from the state (although the role of the state in a private sporting league is not clear; and the Indian cricket board has said that there will be no increase in teams from the current 10); and the purchase of cow dung from farmers at ₹2 per kg .

Madhya Pradesh goes to the polls on November 17, and the Congress is looking to unset the Bharatiya Janata Party, which has ruled the state for 20 years except for 15 months between December 2018 and March 2020. The financial impact of the promises wasn’t immediately clear but analysts said it could run into tens of thousands of crores.