Waqf Act, OPS, Govt Jobs: Key Takeaways From Mahagathbandhan's Bihar Manifesto

Other key pledges include financial aid for women, enhanced pensions, free electricity, and SME support. The manifesto aims to shape the campaign around livelihoods and social security.

The Mahagathbandhan released its Bihar election manifesto, promising jobs for every family, regularising contract workers, and scrapping the Waqf Act.

Source : PTI

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With just over a week to go before Bihar heads to the polls, the Opposition’s Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) on Tuesday became the first political bloc to release its election manifesto — a document packed with sweeping promises on jobs, welfare, and social justice. The state votes in two phases on November 6 and 11, with counting scheduled for November 14.

The ruling allies, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), are yet to release their manifestos.

Tejashwi Yadav, the Opposition’s chief ministerial candidate and RJD leader, has placed employment at the heart of his campaign — promising skill-based jobs and government employment for at least one member of every family in Bihar.

Mahagathbandhan Manifesto: Key Promises

• Scrapping of the Waqf (Amendment) Act: The manifesto pledges that the controversial law passed by Parliament in April will not be implemented in Bihar. Tejashwi had earlier vowed to “throw it into the dustbin” if voted to power.
• Jobs for Every Family: Within 20 days of forming the government, an act will be passed to provide a government job to one member of every household in the state.
• Regularisation of Jeevika Didis: All Jeevika CM (Community Mobiliser) sisters will be made permanent employees and accorded government status, with a fixed monthly salary of ₹30,000.
• Permanent Status for Contractual Staff: All contractual and outsourced workers across departments will be made permanent.
• Skill-Based Employment: New opportunities will be created in IT parks, Special Economic Zones (SEZs), agro-industries, healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, renewable energy, food processing, and tourism.
• Support for SMEs and Infrastructure Push: A comprehensive policy for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) will be introduced, alongside plans for an educational city, industrial clusters, and five new expressways to be developed across 2,000 acres.
• Restoration of the Old Pension Scheme: The alliance has promised to bring back the OPS for government employees.
• Mai-Behin Maan Yojana: Under this scheme, women will receive ₹2,500 per month in financial assistance beginning December.
• Enhanced Social Security Pensions: Widows and senior citizens will receive a monthly pension of ₹15,002, with an annual increment of ₹2,200. Persons with disabilities will receive ₹3,000 per month, and every household will get 200 units of free electricity.
• Protection Against Microfinance Harassment: The alliance has promised a new law to regulate microfinance institutions, curb arbitrary interest rates, and prevent harassment of women during instalment collections.

A Job-Centric Pitch

The Grand Alliance’s manifesto leans heavily on Tejashwi Yadav’s long-standing promise of employment generation — a key theme that helped the Opposition make significant electoral gains in the previous state polls. With the release of its manifesto ahead of its rivals, the alliance appears keen to shape the public conversation around livelihoods and social security in the final stretch of the campaign.