RURAL AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
The two realities that India faces are (1) that nearly 60 per cent of the people live in rural areas and (2) urbanisation is taking place rapidly. Hence, we have to pay equal attention to rural development and urban development, and provide adequate infrastructure in our villages and towns/cities.
Some issues like livelihoods, housing, water, electricity, habitat, pollution, climate change, transport and disaster management are common to both rural and urban areas.
1. For rural areas, Congress will pass the Right to Homestead Act, extend the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana to all villages and habitations, and increase the funds to and quicken the pace of implementation of the National Drinking Water Mission.
Transport and Connectivity Related Commitments:
5. Transport facilities and connectivity between rural areas and the nearby town/city will be augmented so that people may live in rural areas and work in urban areas.
6. Congress will implement a comprehensive plan for multi-modal urban public transport.
Infrastructure Related Commitments:
1. Congress will mobilize public and private capital, increase the pace of construction, and augment infrastructure. The focus will be on design, quality, speed of implementation, maintenance and accountability.
2. Private capital must be attracted to create public assets and infrastructure. The BJP/NDA government has inverted this model and is using public money to create assets that eventually find their way into private hands. Congress will stop this loot of public money.