Congress put forward five promises for women including 50 percent reservation in govt jobs

NEW DELHI: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Congress has made five promises to women. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi announced at the 'Women's Conference' organized in Dhule, Maharashtra as part of the Bharat Nyaya Jodo Yatra that women from poor families would be given Rs 1 lakh each directly and 50 percent reservation in central government jobs.

Under the 'Mahalakshmi' Guarantee, an annual assistance of Rs 1 lakh will be provided directly to a woman from a poor family.

50 percent of new recruitments in central government jobs will be reserved for women. Rahul said that soon half of the government offices will be filled with women.

The third guarantee is 'Shakti Ka Samman' which doubles the central government allocation for the monthly salary of ASHA, Anganwadi and lunch workers. The fourth guarantee is the appointment of 'Adhikar Maitri' in all panchayats to educate women and help them with their legal rights.

Safe hostel for women

The fifth guarantee is 'Savitribai Phule Hostels'. This is a scheme to provide hostels with security and food facilities for women in all district headquarters. Rahul alleged that the Women's Reservation Act was delayed by ten years because the BJP had no intention of providing reservation benefits to women. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said that a new agenda for women is being set. "Congress has declared commitment to participatory justice, farmer justice and youth justice. Our guarantee does not include empty promises and statements. Stand with the Congress in the fight to protect democracy and the Constitution," he said.