West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday released the Trinamool Congress (TMC) manifesto ahead of the upcoming two-phase Assembly elections. Seeking a fourth consecutive term, Banerjee announced 10 key ‘protigyas’ (pledges) that her party aims to fulfil if voted back to power.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata, she said these promises are focused on further development of the state. She also criticised the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, accusing it of trying to obstruct the work of her administration.
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Speaking about welfare initiatives, Banerjee said, “In the budget, we have prioritised agriculture and farmers’ welfare. Housing will be provided to all. Now we will introduce Duare Chikitsa. Earlier, we successfully implemented Duare Sarkar, and that will continue. Under Amar Para Amar Samadhan, we have allocated ₹8,000 crore at the booth level, but many of those working on these projects have been removed so that the work cannot continue. However, development will go on.”
What is ‘Duare Chikitsa’?
One of the major highlights of the manifesto is ‘Duare Chikitsa’, a new healthcare initiative. Under this scheme, annual medical camps will be organised in every block and town to ensure doorstep delivery of healthcare services.
The aim here is to make basic healthcare accessible to all, especially in remote and underserved areas.
Apart from healthcare, the manifesto also focuses strongly on education. Banerjee announced that thousands of schools in the state will be modernised with the introduction of e-learning and advanced technology. She emphasised the need for teacher recruitment but pointed out that ongoing court cases have delayed the process.
She said, “Education is a right for everyone in Bengal. We want to recruit teachers, but legal hurdles have kept many candidates waiting. People are suffering because of this.”
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The manifesto reflects TMC’s continued focus on welfare schemes, infrastructure development and improving public services as it heads into the elections.
