Back in saddle, let Cong now fulfil its promises: residents

Congress has promised to expand the BMTC bus fleet by 11,000 in the next five years, but people feel this is too slow a growth

Veena G

Bengaluru: The Congress party has come back to power in Karnataka  with a clear mandate, defeating the BJP with a comfortable margin. Amid din and celebrations by the Congress leadership and their workers, Bengaluru residents now expect the party to fulfil the promises it has made to the people in their election manifesto. This News Trail reporter went about the city eliciting people’s views on their expectations from the new government.

A daily commuter employed with a private firm seeks to remind the Congress of its promise of waiving bus fares for women but adds that the same facility should also be extended to students. One student we spoke to asks the Congress to live up to its promise and scrap the NEP and replace it with a new one. A professor says he looked forward to more corruption-free gover nance.

Here are the excerpts from a cross section of people this newspaper spoke to about their expectations from the new government: Neelima who hails from Tamil Nadu and currently working in Bengaluru takes two buses to her work place, starting from Magadi Main Road and switching buses at Majestic. She finds that buses after Attibele are less frequent and more expensive.

“Bus fare is nil for women in Tamil Nadu, I am looking forward to the same here. I can only afford to use the bus to go to work. When my children were studying, they had to pay more than a thousand for a bus pass. Congress has said they will waive bus fare for women, I hope it happens to students too.” Adithya, a postgraduate student from Bengaluru expects not only more employment opportunities but also ones at least offering minimum wage.

"After COVID-19, many recent graduates have been forced to work at places that offer minimum to no wages at all. Students ended up doing "inter nship" for "experience" fo r stipends that are less than acceptable minimum wage, this is just exploitation." A second-year student from Banglore who is currently enrolled under the NEP syllabus hopes for immediate rejection of NEP 2020.

She added, "When they scrap NEP, it has to be ensured that colleges that have already opted for it have a smooth transition." Congress’ manifesto has also promised to frame a new education policy to replace the NEP 2020. Arecent college graduate noted that a number of students had to drop out of education during their SSLC or PU due to the hijab ban.

"I hope it is ensured that they finish their PU exams." Alexander James, a retired professor and an active city resident, says he is looking forward to more corruption-free gover nance. He also wants to ensure that environmental protection is prioritised. "Old schools that are closed also require renovation to continue their functions," he added. Bharat G from Shimoga who works in the IT sector in Bengaluru wants to see an end to hate-mongering.

"I want to see a reduction in open hatred for minorities, being a Dalit it matters a lot to me." Apart from it, he looks forward to more investment in the non-tech start-ups, clean energy and tech-based agricultural r e f o r m s." Congress’ manifesto promises to invest `1.5 lakh crore in irrigation projects, `1.5 lakh crore to modernise agriculture and `50,000 crore for infrastructural development in villages.

"I also hope they expand IT out of Banglore, maybe Hubli-Dharwad, as the IT brother city of Bengaluru,” he added. Sagar Moudgal, a start-up owner, spoke along similar lines. He hoped global investors will be attracted to the promotion of tech in the agricultural sector.

"When Priyank Kharge was there, he provided venture capitalists with the kind of ecosystem which we currently need to go beyond IT start-ups. IITs are always going to come out with fresh ideas but to address the most real problems it has to come from the grassroots level. We need to listen to the right people.”

But, there are some things that still worry people of Bengaluru. Congress' Manifesto had promised to increase the BMTC fleet by 11,000 in the next five years. This they feel is too slow a growth. There have been some concerns over the return of elevated corridors, which citizens have actively opposed and tunnel roads in CBD, which might increase the number of private vehicles on the road and in turn the congestion that follows.