India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday, April 14, released their election manifesto ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party president JP Nadda in New Delhi.
Titled ‘Modi’s Guarantee: Developed India 2047’, the manifesto promises to implement the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, which was notified in March this year.
The BJP has also promised to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) across the country. The UCC calls for a single law for all religious minorities in matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance.
The manifesto also claims to make ‘One Nation, One Election’ a reality. “We have set up a High Powered Committee to examine the issues of conducting simultaneous elections and will work towards the implementation of the recommendations of the Committee,” reads the manifesto regarding the implementation of ONOE. The manifesto also promises a common electoral roll.
Addressing the media, PM Modi said that the manifesto focuses on four pillars of Viksit Bharath - women power, youth power, farmers and the poor.
Key takeaways from the manifesto:
> Will bring the National Cooperative Policy.
> Enhance running of special train services for migrant workers on important occasions.
> Create a technology-based system such as Bhashini for preservation and/or facilitating translation of languages of linguistic minorities.
> Establish Thiruvalluvar Cultural Centres globally to showcase the country’s culture and offer training in yoga, ayurveda, Bharatiya languages, and classical music.
> Facilitate Yoga and Ayurveda Institutes in all the major countries and establish a globally recognised certification mechanism for Yoga and Ayurveda.
> Bring back artefacts that were taken away illegally from Bharat.
> Encourage Indian classical language research in major educational institutions across the world.
> Revitalise Bharatiya civilizational monuments by collaborating with countries across the globe.
> Launch a global outreach programme for documenting and promoting the tangible and intangible legacy of Lord Ram in all countries; celebrate Ramayan Utsav across the globe to commemorate the Pran Pratishtha of Ayodhya Ram temple.
>Establish military theatre commands.
> Accelerate development of infrastructure along the Indo-China, Indo-Pakistan and Indo-Myanmar borders and introduce technological solutions on fenced portions.
> Eliminate drugs through technical, legal and intelligence programmes; leverage Big Data analytics, artificial intelligence, drones, and satellite imagery to detect and dismantle drug trafficking networks.
> Implement Bhartiya Nyay Sahita expeditiously through training, online certificate courses, and new curriculum in universities and law schools.
> Expand defence footprint across strategic locations and partner with friendly countries to protect both the country’s and the Indian Ocean Region’s security interests.
> Strengthen the country’s digital sovereignty; take stringent action against digital entities that threaten the safety of Bharatiya on the internet.
> Make Bharath third largest economy (No time frame mentioned)
> Completely revamp economic and commercial legislations.
> Expand domestic defence manufacturing and exports; accelerate indigenisation in major Air and Land Equipment Platforms.
> Global railway manufacturing hub.
> Global aviation manufacturing and MRO hub
> Promote ship building.
>Facilitate digital revolution by 6G technology.
> Railways: Construct new tracks, increase ticket availability, expand Kavach Train Protection System.
> Super App to provide all trains related services in a single app.
> Energy Independence by 2047.
> Strengthen the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act.
> Cost reduction in construction and registration, enable automatic approvals for standard housing designs, and promote mixed-use housing.
> Create a digital Urban Land Records System.
> Holistic development of Ayodhya city.
> Establish a dedicated scholarship programme to research ancient Bharatiya manuscripts and epigraphs.
> Establish Bharatiya Sanskriti Kosh for preservation and protection of ancient Bharatiya civilization, classical languages, culture, and traditions through technology.
> Developing thematic circuits for promoting cultural experience in:
Border villages
Sustainable ecotourism in select under-explored regions
Riverine tourism along all major river ecosystems
Island tourism hubs in Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Adventure tourism in the North East and other hill states.
>Fiscal autonomy of Panchayati Raj institutions.
> National Litigation Policy to expedite the resolution of all matters in courts, lower the cost of contested court proceedings, and decrease the number of cases in which the government is a party and the consequent load on the courts.
> Complete overhaul of the commercial and civil justice systems, on the lines of criminal justice reforms.
> Modernising police forces by making them tech-trained and tech-equipped through the Police Modernization Scheme.
> Establish fast track courts for quick disposal of pendency in identified areas.
> Increase the number of UG and PG seats in medical education.
> Facilitate IOA to bid for hosting the Olympic Games in 2036.
> Transform islands into global tourism destinations by developing beach resorts, marine adventure activities, and robust coastal infrastructure.
> Maintain peace in the North East, address issues in the disturbed areas, and remove AFSPA in a phased manner.
> Combat Himalayan river floods by partnering with neighbouring countries to strategically manage the Himalayan rivers.
> Launch Gaganyaan, India's first human spaceflight mission, and land an astronaut on the Moon.
> Establish Bharatiya Antariksha Station (BAS).