SANGRUR: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today urged Punjabis not to be taken in by the false promises of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Convener Arvind Kejriwal who had failed to implement any of the promises he was making in Punjab in Delhi, even as he announced that the old age pension would be increased to Rs 3, 100per month and Shagun scheme beneficiaries would get Rs 75, 000.
The SAD President was addressing public gatherings at Lehra in favour of Gobind Singh Longowal and Dirba in favour of Gulzar Singh.
Asserting that they should not get befooled by Kejriwal yet again, Mr Sukhbir Badal said “Kejriwal did not come to visit you even once for five years despite the fact that you made AAP the principal opposition party”. He said even now Kejriwal was promising to give Rs 1, 000 per month to women in Punjab despite the fact that he had not given this benefit to women in Delhi since the last eight years. “Kejriwal is on record to having said that contractual employees do not work once regularized and that this was why the Delhi government had not regularized any contractual employees”.
Meanwhile telling people that the SAD had always fulfilled the commitments made by it, Mr Badal said “we are responsible for introducing unique social welfare schemes in the State be it old age pension, aata-daal or shagun scheme. We have fulfilled all out commitments and never faltered on them. I assure that once the SAD-BSP government is sworn in we will increase old age pension to Rs 3, 100 per month besides giving an enhanced shagun of Rs 75, 000 to brides from the weaker sections of society”.
Mr Badal said the two welfare measures announced today would be in addition to the thirteen point programme launched by the party earlier as well as other measures announced after receiving representations from different sections of society. He said these included Rs 2, 000 per month to women heads of below poverty line families, 400 units of free power per month, Rs ten lakh student card for higher studies, Rs 10 lakh medical insurance, creation of one lakh government jobs and ten lakh private jobs, distribution of five lakh houses free of cost to the poor and needy as well as giving five thousand five marla houses to the poor in all constituencies of the State”.
The SAD president also announced that the SAD was committed to lowering the input costs of farmers. He said keeping this in mind the party had decided to lower the rate of diesel by Rs 10 per liter once the SAD-BSP government was formed. He also announced that the alliance government would focus on health and education and that mega schools would be constructed at the block level to provide quality education and that a big hospital would be established in each constituency besides a medical college in each district.
Speaking about the need to provide more opportunities to the youth, Mr Badal said “we will provide 33 per cent reservation to students from government schools in technical institutions including medical colleges and also look after their tuition fee”. He also announced that 75 per cent jobs in the private sector would be reserved for Punjabi youth.