The Trinamool Congress and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party have released their common manifesto for the upcoming Goa Assembly polls, promising resumption of mining operations and reservation for women in jobs and local bodies in the coastal state if they come to power.
The mining operations, which used to be one of the main sources of revenue for Goa, came to a grinding halt in the state in March 2018 after the Supreme Court quashed 88 mining leases. The poll manifesto, released by alliance partners TMC and MGP on Saturday ahead of the state polls on February 14, mentioned that “instituting environmentally sustainable mining practices with 80 per cent reservation for Goans in extraction contracts and mining jobs would be the priority" of their government.
All income generated through the Goa Mineral Corporation would be utilised to fund welfare schemes in the state, it said. The manifesto also promised 33 per cent reservation for Goan women in all jobs, including the private sector, and 50 per cent reservation for women in all the local bodies.
The TMC-MGP alliance has also assured two fast track courts to address crimes against women and children, and a mobile app for women's safety. According to the manifesto, the TMC-MGP government would boost Goa's gross domestic product to Rs 1.8 lakh crore from the existing Rs 0.71 lakh crore by creating 2,00,000 new jobs with 80 per cent reservation for Goans and 10,000 vacancies in the government sector to be filled in three years.
The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC, which is contesting the Goa poll for the first time, forged an alliance with the state's oldest regional party MGP last month. In the 2017 Goa Assembly polls, the MGP won three seats in the 40-member Assembly.
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