Congress will ensure J-K gets back status of full-fledged state: Kharge

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday said his party guarantees the rights of Jammu and Kashmir and will ensure it gets back the status of a full-fledged state.

Tagging screenshots of the seven guarantees promised by the Congress ahead of the assembly elections, Kharge said in a post on X that the party would "give new energy to the youth" by filling one lakh government jobs.

"The Congress guarantees the rights of Jammu and Kashmir. We will get J&K the status of a full-fledged state," he said in his post in Hindi.

Kharge also highlighted the party's promise of free treatment of Rs 25 lakh for every family and a super-specialty hospital in every district. He said this will create a healthy society.

"Dr Manmohan Singh's plan for rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits will be expanded. Constitution-based rights of OBC class will be secured," Kharge said.

Woman heads of families will get financial protection of Rs 3,000 every month, he said. Kharge also highlighted the promise of food security for every member of the family with 11 kg grain.

In its manifesto for the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir released on Monday, the Congress has promised a slew of welfare measures for farmers, women and the youth.

The highlight of the manifesto -- Haath Badlega Halaat -- is insurance for all crops against natural calamities and a minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 72 per kilogram for apple.

The manifesto was released by AICC media and publicity department head Pawan Khera and PCC president Tariq Hameed Karra at the party office in Srinagar.

"We will provide additional financial support of Rs 4,000 for landless, tenant, and land-owning farming households per year. We will also arrange 99-year leases to landless farmers cultivating state land," Khera had said.

He said a Rs 2,500 crore fund will be set up for all district-level irrigation projects to ensure 100 per cent irrigation for farmers in Jammu and Kashmir.

For the youth of Jammu and Kashmir, the party promised an unemployment allowance of up to Rs 3,500 per month for one year to qualified youths.

The party has promised to fill one lakh vacant government posts by issuing a job calendar within 30 days.

The manifesto states that the party will revive special border recruitment for police, fire brigade and forest protection force. It also promises to revive the scheme for allotment of 30 per cent construction work-related contracts to unemployed engineers' groups.

"We will simplify the verification process for all government jobs, passports and other purposes by making them time-bound and simplified to check undue harassment," the manifesto reads.

"The long night has ended and a new dawn is upon us. Haath badlega Jammu aur Kashmir ke haalaat. The Congress will heal the wounds," Khera said.