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Tejashwi Yadav promises social security pension hike if voted to power in Bihar
Bihar is due for polls next year and the RJD has been in the opposition for the majority of the last two decades.
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav has promised voters that if his party is voted to power in Bihar next year, the amount paid to beneficiaries of various social security schemes will see a more than three-fold rise.
The former Bihar deputy chief minister said the amount paid to senior citizens, widows, and people with disabilities would be increased from ₹400 to ₹1,500 per month.
"If we form the government after the assembly polls due next year, people over 60 years of age or with disabilities as also widows will get ₹1,500 per month by way of the social security schemes in place," the leader of opposition in Bihar assembly was quoted as saying by PTI.
The RJD is also a partner in the ruling coalition in adjoining Jharkhand. The recently concluded assembly elections in Jharkhand saw the coalition retain power riding on the popularity of various social security schemes and JMM leader Hemant Soren returned as Chief Minister.
Bihar is due for polls next year and the RJD has been in the opposition for a majority of the last two decades.
“We deliver on our promises whenever we get a chance", he said while terming the ₹400 per month currently paid in Bihar as "meagre".
Gunning for the polls
The latest announcement from Yadav comes a week after he had promised "200 units of free electricity" to the people of the state alleging that they were reeling under exorbitant tariff rates and faulty billing on account of pre-paid meters.
Incidentally, the RJD leader also claimed credit for large-scale recruitment in government departments in Bihar, linking these to his promise of "10 lakh jobs" ahead of 2020 assembly polls, much to the chagrin of JD(U) headed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Bihar is scheduled to go to polls likely in October-November next year.
