The Congress on Friday unveiled its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, featuring proposals resembling establishing a proper to apprenticeship, offering a authorized assurance for Minimum Support Price (MSP), and advocating for a constitutional modification to raise the 50 p.c cap on reservations for SCs, STs, and OBCs, amongst different pledges.

Here are a number of the key highlights from the occasion’s manifesto:

Healthcare

• Universal and free healthcare in public well being centres resembling hospitals, clinics, main well being centres, cellular healthcare models, dispensaries and well being camps; free healthcare to incorporate examination, diagnostics, remedy, surgical procedure, medicines, rehabilitation and palliative care.

• The Rajasthan mannequin of cashless insurance coverage as much as Rs 25 lakhs for common healthcare will likely be adopted.

• Current common healthcare programme to be redesigned for various sections of individuals and permit enlistment of personal hospitals, non-profit well being amenities and well being centres below medical insurance schemes.

• Maternity advantages will likely be accessible to all ladies. All employers will likely be requested to mandatorily grant paid maternity go away for his or her staff.

• Budget allocation for well being to be elevated step-by-step yearly to realize 4 p.c of complete expenditure by 2028–29.

• Doubling Centre’s contribution to the pay of frontline well being staff (resembling ASHA, Anganwadi, Mid-Day meal cooks, and so forth.)

• Establish one authorities medical college-cum-hospital in every district; no hospital or medical school shall be permitted to be opened or allowed to perform until 75 p.c of medical, paramedical and instructing posts are stuffed.

• All producers of medicines will likely be below strict scrutiny for sustaining high quality and following good manufacturing practices.

• Number of central authorities dispensaries will likely be quickly expanded.

• National Mission on Immunisation will likely be taken up; will guarantee full immunisation of 100% of kids inside 5 years.

• Expand mid-day meal scheme as much as Class XII to handle dietary deficiency amongst kids.

Women’s welfare

• ‘Mahalakshmi scheme’ to supply Rs 1 lakh per yr to each poor Indian household as an unconditional money switch. Benefactors to be recognized amongst households at backside of earnings pyramid. Amount to be instantly transferred to checking account of oldest lady in family. Absent a lady, will probably be transferred to the account of the oldest member of the household.

• Reserve 50 p.c of central authorities jobs for ladies beginning in 2025.

• More ladies appointments in excessive positions resembling judges, secretaries to authorities, high-ranking law enforcement officials, legislation officers and administrators on the boards of listed firms.

• Ensure ‘Same Work, Same Wages’ to stop wage discrimination towards ladies.

• Strictly implement legal guidelines meant to stop offences towards ladies resembling sexual harassment at office and safety from home violence.

• Centre to fund state governments in constructing evening shelters for migrant ladies staff and satisfactory variety of secure and hygienic public bathrooms for ladies will likely be offered in cities and cities.

Farmers

• Legal assure to Minimum Support Prices (MSP) introduced by authorities yearly, as per MS Swaminathan Commission; MSP payable to farmer-seller at procurement centres and APMCs will likely be instantly credited digitally to farmer’s checking account.

• Crop insurance coverage to be made farm and farmer particular; premium to be charged from farmer in accordance with sum insured; all claims will likely be settled inside 30 days.

• Establish farmers’ retail markets in massive villages and small cities to allow farmers to deliver their produce and promote them to shoppers.

• Doubling worth of output in dairying and poultry in 5 years; doubling funding for R&D in agriculture in 5 years.

• Create three avenues on the market of agricultural produce after consulting farmer organisation – (a) Regulated Market below the prevailing APMC Act; (b) E-market that operated by autonomous physique with illustration of farmers’ organizations, Farmer-Producer Organizations (FPOs) and particular person progressive farmers; (c) Freedom for farmers to promote agricultural produce at farm-gate or at every other place of selection with choice to add sale-and-purchase settlement on a digital ledger.

Fisheries

• Fishing communities to be issued bank cards (like Kisan Credit Cards) by banks and prolonged credit score.

• Restore subsidies for diesel for sea-going fishing communities.

• Inland fishing and aquaculture will likely be recognised as ‘agriculture’.

• Fishing communities to be enumerated in caste census and given identification playing cards by Centre.

Jobs and Youth

• Fill practically 30 lakh vacancies in sanctioned posts at numerous ranges in central authorities.

• Abolish Agnipath scheme and direct Armed Forces to renew regular recruitment to realize the complete sanctioned energy.

• Right to Apprenticeship Act to supply one-year apprenticeship with non-public or public sector firm to each diploma holder or school graduate below age of 25. Apprentices to be paid Rs 1 lakh per yr.

• Write off all excellent pupil mortgage debt, together with unpaid curiosity as of March 15, 2024; Centre to compensate banks for forgiven quantities.

• Revamp Fund of Funds Scheme for startups; allocate 50% of funds, aiming to distribute them equally amongst all districts, to assist people below 40 in beginning companies and creating jobs.

• Double variety of Anganwadi staff and create an extra 14 lakh jobs; Appoint second ASHA employee in all villages with inhabitants exceeding 2,500 individuals.

• Launch city employment programme guaranteeing work for city poor in reconstruction and renewal of city infrastructure.

• Create new employment-linked incentive (ELI) Scheme for corporates to win tax credit for added hiring towards common, high quality jobs.

• Provide jobs for low-education, low-skilled youth by launching Water Bodies Restoration Programme and Wasteland Regeneration Programme that will likely be applied by means of village panchayats and municipalities.

Workers

• Guaranteed nationwide minimal of Rs 400 per day.

• Increase wage below MGNREGA to Rs 400 per day; MGNREGA funds and staff will even be deployed to construct public belongings. For 2023-24, highest every day wage below MGNERGA is at Rs 357 per day in Haryana and lowest wage is at Rs 221 in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

• Introduce reforms in industrial and labour legal guidelines to revive stability between labour and capital to satisfy full employment and excessive productiveness good points.

• Make legal guidelines to specify and shield rights of gig staff and unorganised staff and improve their social safety.

• Propose legal guidelines to manage employment of home assist and migrant staff, and guarantee their primary authorized rights.

• List of ration card holders will likely be up to date in all States instantly and will probably be ensured that every one ration card holders, together with migrant staff, get their rations repeatedly.

• Expand PDS protection based mostly on up to date inhabitants figures; PDS will embrace pulses (dal) and cooking oil.

• Sufficient funds will likely be allotted to PDS, ICDS and the Mid-day Meal Scheme to fulfil the mandate of the National Food Security Act, 2013.

• Collaborate with state governments to open Indira Canteens, providing subsidised meals, as has been accomplished in Karnataka and Rajasthan.

Media

• Amend Press Council of India Act, 1978 to strengthen the system of self-regulation, shield journalistic freedoms, uphold editorial independence and guard towards authorities interference.

• Enact legal guidelines to guard journalists from coercive motion by the State, together with proscribing powers resembling authorities surveillance of journalists, seizure of their gadgets and publicity of their sources.

• Enact legal guidelines to curb monopolies in media, cross-ownership of various segments of media, and management of media by enterprise organisations.

• Withdraw Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023; amend or delete Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023; Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023, geared toward eliminating authorities’s backdoor censorship.

• Pass a legislation to protect freedom of Internet and stop arbitrary and frequent web shutdowns.

Judiciary

• Establish National Judicial Commission (NJC), liable for choice and appointment of judges in excessive courts and Supreme Court, in session with SC and Chief Justices of HCs.

• Fill all vacancies in excessive courts and Supreme Court inside three years.

• Amend the Constitution to create two divisions within the Supreme Court: a Constitutional Court and a Court of Appeal.

• Constitutional Court, consisting of seven seniormost judges, will hear and determine circumstances involving the interpretation of the Constitution and different circumstances of authorized significance or nationwide significance.

• Court of Appeal would be the last court docket of attraction that can, sitting in benches of three judges every, hear appeals from the High Court and National Tribunals.

• More ladies and individuals belonging to SC, ST, OBC and minorities to be appointed as judges of HCs and high court docket.

• Establish Judicial Complaints Commission, consisting of retired judges of apex court docket and retired Chief Justices of HCs, to research complaints of misconduct towards judges of the upper judiciary.

Infrastructure

• Modernise outdated railway infrastructure; guarantee trains and stations serve wants of widespread individuals and commuters.

• Policy on street tolls to be reassessed, with new formulation applied to find out honest toll quantities and durations for every street section, addressing issues of extreme charges and exploitation by road-users.

• Attract non-public capital to create public belongings and infrastructure.

• Implement complete plan for multi-modal city public transport.

• Regulatory regime for ports and airports to be established to advertise effectivity and competitors amongst ports/airports.

• Assess infrastructure deficit within the North Eastern states and supply extra funds for constructing infrastructure.