BJP vows to double doles for \'double engine\' government

HYDERABAD: In an effort to counter the welfare schemes of the K. Chandrasekhar Rao-led BRS government ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections, the state BJP is focusing on implementing 'double engine sarkar’, the BJP at the Centre and in the state, but also assuring to double the sops: Aasara pensions to two members per family and doubling the farm loan waiver amount, if voted to power.

The BJP is thought to have begun preliminary preparations for the election manifesto for Telangana, with several proposals on the table that it hopes, if approved by the party's central leadership, could help it take on the BRS more effectively.

The BJP's key plan is to expand the number of Aasara pension beneficiaries to two per family, as opposed to the BRS government's policy of only one pension in a family. While the BRS government announced a waiver of all agricultural loans taken by farmers up to `1 lakh, propelling the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) (now BRS) to power for a second consecutive term, the BJP promises to increase the loan waiver scheme to `2 lakh if elected.

In addition to relying on the now-well-established punchline of the 'double engine sarkar,' the state BJP hopes its strategy will propel Telangana "further, faster, and towards a better future," as the party seeks to make some things "much better" for the people if its plans for preparing its manifesto for the state elections are any indication.

“This is not just about increasing or doubling the number of beneficiaries or the amounts. By doing so, we will expose the BRS government's failure to provide critical assistance to those who need it the most, and the arbitrary restrictions it imposed on some of its schemes," a BJP leader said. In addition, potential Aasara pension beneficiaries can self-declare their need for it, the leader said.

Elections to the Telangana Assembly are scheduled before the end of the year with the next government assuming office by December 12. The BJP is determined to win in Telangana this time, despite the fact that the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, led by Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, has expressed confidence that it will return to power for an unprecedented third time in a row in the state, whose formation it claims, had much to do with its struggle.

State BJP president Bandi Sanjay Kumar had already announced multiple times throughout the five phases of his Praja Sangrama Yatra, his march through 56 Assembly constituencies, that a BJP government in Telangana, if elected, will provide free education and health care for all.

Taken together, these announcements, and the plans the BJP is making to include in its manifesto, the party leaders said, will throw a gauntlet that the BRS would be wary of picking up quickly. The BJP state leadership has also been saying that the BRS government, and Chandrashekar Rao have mismanaged the state finances, which, if properly managed, could do much more for the state and its people.