Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann hints at monthly stipend for women in Budget on Mar 8
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Tuesday hinted at fulfilling the promise of providing state women with a monthly stipend in the state Budget on March 8.
“I can’t leak the Budget, but if we are opening the Vidhan Sabha on Sunday, presenting the Budget and observing International Women’s Day, then there will definitely be some gift for our mothers and sisters,” he said.
Ruling AAP is yet to fulfil its pre-poll promise of providing Rs 1,000 monthly allowance to every woman aged 18 and above.
The CM made the announcement after laying the stone for a Rs 24.5-crore Industrial Training Institute (ITI) at Mansa’s Fatehgarh Sahnianwali village.
Mann also told reporters that the state government would provide security to Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi during his visit to the state on February 28 as per protocol.
“However, the venue chosen (for a rally) by the Congress leaders at Barnala in the Sangrur Lok Sabha constituency reflects their fear. I urge them to speak about the (now-scrapped) MGNREGA, and not just to target me,” said the CM. Earlier, during his 35-minute speech, Mann launched a sharp attack on the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), the Congress and the BJP. Taking a dig at the SAD, he referred to statements by Sukhbir Singh Badal and alleged that the previous regime’s education policies had weakened academic standards.
