Congress within striking distance, BJP govt in Haryana goes on a welfare overdrive

After its Lok Sabha election tally was halved and its 58% vote share came down to 46% in a massive reversal, the BJP in Haryana has started making attempts to placate voters and make up the lost ground before the Assembly elections in a few months.

The BJP-led government of Nayab Singh Saini has already made a raft of announcements, from providing 50,000 jobs in the next two months and free 100-sq-yard plots to every family below the poverty line to free bus travel up to 1,000 km with the Haryana Antyodaya Parivar Parivahan Yojana (HAPPY) and approval for unauthorised residential colonies along with adequate infrastructure in each. The government has also admitted to flaws in its flagship portal-based ID scheme Parivar Pehchan Patra for property and family IDs.

With its vote share down and the Congress closing the gap — it went from no seats and 28% vote share to five seats and a 43% vote share — the Haryana government is making new announcements almost every other day, while ministers dispatched across the state and the official machinery pressed into action to redress people’s grievances on a priority basis.

The government started rolling out welfare schemes immediately after the June 4 results. On June 6, Saini removed the age limit cap in Mukhyamantri Kisan Evam Khetihar Mazdoor Jeevan Suraksha Yojana, under which farmers, agriculture labourers, and market yard labourers are eligible for financial assistance of Rs 37,500 to Rs 5 lakh in case of death or disability while operating agricultural machinery. The scheme earlier had an age cap of 65 years.

The following day, Saini relaunched HAPPY cards, enabling free bus travel up to 1,000 km for families with an annual income below Rs 1 lakh. This is expected to benefit