TEN lakh jobs in Government and semi-government departments, free medical treatment of up to Rs 10 lakh, LPG cylinder at Rs 500 and 300 units of free electricity every month are some of the key promises that the Congress made in its manifesto for the Gujarat elections. In the manifesto released on Saturday, the grand old party, which has been out of power in the State for more than two decades, also promised unemployment allowance of Rs 3,000 per month, Rs 2,000 pension to divyangs, widows, senior citizens and needy women, and waiver of loans of up to Rs 3 lakh of all fishermen, among other things.

 

Rajasthan Chief Minister and Congress’s senior observer for Gujarat polls Ashok Gehlot released the manifesto at the state party headquarters here in the presence of other party leaders. Elections to the 182-member Assembly in Gujarat, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is currently in power, will be held in two phases - on December 1 and 5 - and the counting of votes will be taken up on December 8. The Congress’s manifesto committee chairman Dipak Babaria said the party interacted with nearly 65 lakh people before preparing this poll document.