Senior Odisha Congress leader Pradip Majhi quits party
Majhi, who was reportedly not pulling on well with the State leadership headed by OPCC president Niranjan Patnaik sent his resignation letter to party interim president Sonia Gandhi.
The Odisha unit of Congress party releasing its poll manifesto on Friday guaranteed Rs 3,000 unemployment allowance, a pension of Rs 2,000 a month for farmers, and 200 units of electricity free for domestic consumers.
The Congress party, if voted to power in Odisha, will also provide a bonus along with MSP (minimum support price) of Rs 3,000 per quintal of paddy, said AIICC Odisha-in-charge Ajoy Kumar.
The salient features of the manifesto included the guarantee to provide free health services to both government employees and other people up to Rs 15 lakh.
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The agriculture loan of farmers will be waived off, the manifesto committed adding that loans of women self-help groups (SHGs) will be waived. Besides, it will provide an LPG cylinder to every family at Rs 500.
The grand-old party also promised to provide monthly old-age, widow, and Divyang allowance of Rs 2,000.
The manifesto also guaranteed free healthcare services of up to Rs 25 lakh in government and private hospitals for both government employees and other citizens.
The manifesto included a promise of 27 percent reservation for backward classes in educational institutions and the service sector. It also guaranteed the refund of lost savings of investors to chit fund scam within six months.
Lying low with successive electoral drubbing since 2000, the Congress party in the coastal State has already lost the principal Opposition party standing to BJP. The speculation of possible pre-poll alliance between the ruling BJD and BJP has however emerged as a blessing in disguise by energizing the party cadre to fight the polls.
Over the years, its vote share has reached its lowest ebb at 17.02% during the 2019 assembly elections, way behind the Biju Janata Dal (44.71%) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (32.49%) Out of the 147 assembly seats, Congress contested last time, it failed to hit the double-digit mark, managing to win nine seats only.
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