Just few days ahead of the first phase of Chhattisgarh Assembly elections, the ruling BJP and opposition Congress released their election manifestoes.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi released the party manifesto in Rajnandgaon, that promises farm loan waiver, minimum support price for crops as per the Swaminathan Commission recommendations and ban on liquor sales.
Titled 'Jan Ghoshana Patra', the manifesto promises special women's police stations, air ambulances and fixing "respectable" income for daily wage labourers.
The next day, the BJP released its manifesto — 'Sanklap Patar', with a special focus on farmers and youth.
Reaching out: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on a roadshow in Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh, on Friday. PTI
Here is a comparison between both the manifestoes.
| Issue | BJP | Congress |
| Agriculture | Rs 1000 per month as pension to small and marginal farmers and landless labourers aged over 60; two lakh new pump connections to cultivators | Loan waiver for farmers within 10 days of coming into power; MSP for paddy will be fixed at Rs 2,500 per quintal (2018-19 rate is Rs. 1,750) |
| Forest produce | MSP to be hiked by 1.5 times for minor forest produce | Increasing MSP on 70-85 forest crops, Rs. 4,000 a bag for tendu patta workers |
| Naxalism | Chhattisgarh will be made a 'naxal-free' State | Naxal-affected panchayats will be given a package of Rs 1 crore for community development works |
| Health | District hospitals will be developed into multi-speciality hospitals; super-speciality hospitals will be set up in Ambikapur and Jagdalpur | Six medical colleges will be converted to multi-speciality hospitals;1,000 specialists will be brought on board in the first year |
| Benefits | Medical allowance of Rs 1,000 per month to pensioners | Every family will be given 35 kgs of rice every month at Re 1 |
| Others | Developing Chhattisgarh as a tourist destination; new film city | Ban on liquor sales; halving electricity bills for domestic consumers |
