Indus Valley Times

SHIMLA,OCT. 14: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday promised to restore the old pension scheme for government employees in Himachal Pradesh if the Congress was voted to power in the Assembly elections.

The AICC general secretary made the announcement while addressing the ‘Parivartan Pratigya Rally’ at Thodo Maidan in Solan district and added that the old scheme was withdrawn by the BJP government at the Centre.

Elections to the Himachal Pradesh Assembly will be held on November 12, the Election Commission of India announced on Friday.

Gandhi said she guaranteed that the decision to restore the old pension scheme and create one lakh jobs would be taken in the first meeting of the new Congress Cabinet.

Two lakh employees in the state have been sitting on a ‘dharna’ (sit-in) to demand restoration of the old pension scheme for two months but no government representative met them, she said.

Gandhi also alleged that 63,000 posts were lying vacant in the state but unemployed youths had not been provided jobs. She promised that five lakh jobs would be provided to unemployed youths in five years and announced a monthly allowance of Rs 1,500 to women to help raise the standard of living.

“This is the time to change, otherwise you will not get anything in the next five years,” she said.

“If you vote the Congress to power, Himachal Pradesh will grow.”

Gandhi also hit back at the BJP for claiming that Himachal would buck the trend of changing governments every five years and said the ruling party changed the trend by not making any development.

The Congress leader also addressed the increasing trend of drug addition in the state and said a policy would be created and de-addiction centres opened in every district. Primary health centres will also be strengthened to provide better health care facilities to people.

Gandhi added that she made her house in Himachal as her grandmother (former prime minister Indira Gandhi) wanted to build a house and retire there but was martyred before she could.

Earlier, she paid obeisance at Maa Shoolini Temple in Solan district before formally launching the party’s election campaign in the hill state. She started her address with “Shoolini Mata Ki Jai” and also released the Congress’ election theme song.

Gandhi’s rally comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed two rallies in Una and Chamba after inaugurating and laying the foundation stones of various projects, including flagging off India’s fourth Vande Bharat Express from Una.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, the Congress’ Himachal unit president Pratibha Singh, Leader of Opposition in Himachal Assembly Mukesh Agnihotri, the party’s election campaign committee chairperson Sukhvinder Sukhu, senior leader Rajeev Shukla and Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Pratap Singh Bajwa also addressed the rally.

-PTI