With the days nearing for the impending Budget session, government is getting ready to implement three of its electoral promises and provide the amount in the vote on account budget.

The payment of enhanced ‘Aasara’ social security pensions to all those who completed 57 years of age is one major promise that will be implemented from the new financial year of 2019-20 and it will benefit about 10 lakh more people. So far only those above 65 years were sanctioned Aasara pensions.

It will also make budgetary provision for the ‘Rythu Bandhu’ investment assistance which will be increased from ₹4,000 to ₹5,000 per acre for each of kharif and rabi seasons and for the crop loan waiver of ₹1 lakh in four annual instalments.

As the vote on account is mainly an expenditure budget till the full budget is presented in June, sources said the provision for loan waiver will certainly be included in June if not in the session to be held in February.

Unemployment defined

But the other major election promise of providing unemployment dole to jobless youth is expected to take considerable time as the government wanted to define first what is unemployment. “It will appoint a high-level committee to define unemployment and also decide the criteria for the eligibility,” sources said.

The Chief Minister’s Office did gather basic data about the implementation of unemployment allowance in seven States, including the eligibility criteria fixed in those States. The allowance ranges from ₹650, ₹1,000, ₹1,500 and ₹3,000 based on educational qualification of eligible beneficiaries in these States except Kerala which gives just ₹120 a month.

Telangana which announced a dole of ₹3,016 will do its own exercise. It will entrust the task to a high-level committee which will also tour other States and prepare guidelines. The Chief Minister apparently has not yet decided on the composition of the committee.

Age bracket

The live register of unemployed youth in the State is 9.13 lakh and the data of those in the age group of 18-35 years is 5.53 lakh. Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana are already implementing the scheme. The age group of unemployed youth in some of the States is in the range of 18 to 35 years and 20 to 35 years. AP fixed the age at 22 to 35 years with graduation or diploma of two years and above. Most of the States fixed the annual family income below ₹2 lakh to be eligible for the dole.