1 mn jobs in 1,000 days if voted to power: Praja Rajyam

The Praja Rajyam Party, led by actor turned politician Chiranjeevi, has proposed to create 1 million jobs in 1,000 days if it is voted to power. It also promised in its draft manifesto, which was released today, to pay Rs 1,000 per month as gratuity to the unemployed graduates till they secured a job.

PRP manifesto committee chairman P Shiv Shanker, former union minister P Upendra, retired bureaucrats KSR Murthy, C Anjaneya Reddy and others released the draft manifesto as Chiranjeevi is touring Adilabad. The PRP draft manifesto has social justice as the theme and focuses on farmers, youth, elderly and backward classes.

Extending the Congress' free power scheme, the PRP said it would provide quality power free for 10 hours to the agriculture sector and to artisans and cottage industries to improve the productivity. It would also provide free power to huts in SC, ST and BC habitations and would give uninterrupted power supply to the domestic sector in phases. Power would be supplied at a 50 per cent cost to the rural households.

It proposed to launch a pension-cum-insurance scheme for the farmers apart from giving 2.5 acre wet land or five acre dry land to the poor among SCs, STs, and BCs and the economically backward. It would give basic grocery items for Rs 100 a month. It has begun experimenting on this in select villages.

Reorganisation of the panchayat raj system and reforms in the general administration and police department also figure in the list of sops. In a first-of-its-kind proposal, the PRP has promised to pay Rs 150,000 to girls by the time they turned 18 or have completed their Intermediate (Plus II) education. It would provide free and compulsory education to all up to Class X and up to post graduation to girls.

It also said it would pay Rs 3,000 to below poverty line families towards cremation charges in the event of death of a family member. Oldage homes would be established in each district and a separate department would be created to address the needs and issues of senior citizens.

Oldage pensions would be enhanced from Rs 200 to Rs 500 a month.