Raipur (PTI): The Congress on Sunday released its manifesto for the Chhattisgarh assembly polls, promising caste census, loan waiver to farmers, Rs 3,200 for per quintal for paddy procurement and subsidised cooking gas cylinders to women under a new scheme.

The ruling party in Chhattisgarh unveiled its manifesto titled 'Bharose ka Ghoshna Patra 2023-28' at six different places - Raipur, Rajnandgaon, Jagdalpur, Bilaspur, Ambikapur and Kawardha - two days before the first phase of the state polls.

Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel released the manifesto in Rajnandgaon while party's state in-charge Kumari Selja unveiled it in state capital Raipur.

Promises including loan waiver to farmers, caste census, procurement of paddy at 20 quintal per acre, free education to students from KG (kindergarten) to PG (post graduation) made by Congress leaders during their poll campaign have been mentioned in the manifesto.

Speaking at the launch of the manifesto, CM Baghel said farmers will get Rs 3,200 per quintal for paddy, including input subsidy currently being given under the Rajiv Gandhi Nyay Yojna to paddy cultivators.

Tenu leaf collection will be done at Rs 6,000 per standard sack in place of the existing Rs 4,000 and tendu leaf collectors will additionally get an annual bonus of Rs 4,000, he said.

Baghel said, "A Mahtari Nyay Yojana will be launched for mothers and sisters," under which a subsidy of Rs 500 per cooking gas cylinder will be given to women of all income groups.

The subsidy will be directly deposited into the bank accounts of women, he said.

Schemes which are currently operational will continue if the Congress retains power in the state, he added.

Polling to the 90-member assembly will be held in two phases on November 7 and 17.

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Singapore/Lucknow (PTI): Uttar Pradesh is ready with land bank, business-focused policies and safety and security, Chief Minister Adityanath told investors in Singapore on Tuesday on a day he met the country's top leaders, including Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong.

On the second day of his official visit to Singapore, Adityanath met the country's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong, and Coordinating Minister for National Security and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, official sources said here.

Held in the presence of a high-level delegation, the discussions focused on leveraging Singapore's expertise in urban planning, internal security architecture and digital governance to help Uttar Pradesh achieve the target of becoming a one-trillion-dollar economy.

During talks with Gan Kim Yong, the chief minister emphasised on UP's pro-business environment and highlighted the state's vast land bank and improved connectivity expected from after the Noida International Airport becomes operational.

The meeting also explored the possibility of Singaporean companies establishing industrial townships in the Delhi-NCR, with particular focus on semiconductor manufacturing and green hydrogen modules.

During his interaction with K Shanmugam, Adityanath discussed modernisation of the state's law and order framework, with emphasis on Singapore's technology-integrated policing model and disaster management protocols.

Speaking to investors, Adityanath listed infrastructure, logistics, MROs among other projects in the pipeline in the state, and said he held more than 100 meetings with the business community during his visit to Singapore.

The UP CM also noted that Singapore investors were committed to a large number of projects in India and UP, including the Ganga Expressway.

Business leaders Adityanath met included CEO and chairpersons of Temasek, Government Investment Corp (GIC), Singapore Airport Terminal Services, and Blackstone.