Loksatta is launching it's most decisive campaign!

Dear Well Wisher of India!

Loksatta made 50 irrevocable promises in 2009 general Elections. Our manifesto is the most implementable and honest one. However, we grossly failed to reach out to people to make them understand it, or failed to make people believe our manifesto is implementable or failed to 'make them believe' that we can deliver.

In the last elections, pole issues were Free Current, Rs 2/KG Rice, Rs 2000 Per family, free Colour TV for each family along with cable connections, National Employment Guarantee scheme, essential groceries for Rs 100/a month, etc. People mostly debated them alone in spite of a progressive alternative agenda being available from Loksatta.

Our Core Manifesto is very simple...

• Dignified job and livelihood for all(without being forced to migrate)
• Education for all
• Healthcare for all
• Infrastructure development
• Self-Governance, power decentralisation
• Police & Judiciary Reforms.

We divided these issues into 50 irrevocable promises, and unfortunately we made the whole thing too complicated for ordinary people to understand.

In essense, we created an impression that our agenda does not effect their daily lives, or we created the impression that this is unimplementable agenda.

And We are heading for another general elections in 2014. Most likely our agenda is not going to change. But our approach to reaching out to people should change for sure. We can no longer confuse people with a complicated agenda. Our propaganda should be simple and single pointed, yet covering every aspect of our core concerns.

And this single pointed agenda must address the needs of entire state. In other words, instead of projecting 50 promises, we must hightlight one Promise. One promise that will effect every family in the entire state, one promise that will address all primary issues such as Employment, Education, Health Care and Power-decentralisation, one promise that will change the map of AP for good.

Developing one SMALL Town For Each Mandal in the state is that promise (it is one of Loksatta's 50 irrevocable promises). It only requires 6% of State's budget to develop one Small Town in each Mandal that has Small-scale Industries for Local Employment, Educational Institutions for Education, Good Hospital for health care of entire Mandal. Other infrastructure such as roads, transport will automatically follow once small towns are developed in subsequent years. According to Loksatta's intial calculations, we can create some 30-50 Lakh jobs in the state if we develop small towns, apart from developing educational institutions and hospitals. Once Rural Mandals can offer jobs, there will not be any forced migrations, and cities do not explode with slums. Since 70% of population live in Mandals(rural), this is inspiring agenda for a Big section of voters.

Not just that, it is also historical requirement of India to develop small towns that can provide alternative job opportunities. Today, Rural India contributes only 18% of GDP due to its sole reliance on agriculture. If we need inclusive growth, we are obliged to create alternative jobs to agriculture for nearly 40% of our population.

From Loksatta's point of view also, it is important that we get closer to rural voters, as they are the ones who actually come to polling booths and vote. Middle class urban people usually vote for the same parties that have grip in rural areas(they call it winnability), excepting a small minority(current voters of Loksatta). Dr JP subscribes to this theory.

Let us agree that 'Developing a Small Town in Each Mandal' is the slogan for Loksatta in 2014 general elections. But, can it win votes for us? No! not if we do not work to raise aspirations of people above these 'free rice, free money, free current kind of politics'.

So, The task is to...

• Propagate the idea 'Small Town for Each Mandal' extensively in Mandals of AP
• Make people believe, if at all this happens, their problems will be solved
• Make people believe, it is just 6% burden on our state budget, all it requires is Govt's desire
• Make people believe, Loksatta is fighting for their cause, not for elections

(will be continued)

Dr JP ridicules those claiming 'Town For Each Mandal' unviable

why 'Small Town For Each Mandal'

Objectives of campaign for 1000 new towns

It is quite normal for any person to doubt why will the government cede to our demand and sanction 6% of budget for betterment of mandals. But that is not the objective of the campaign.

Our campaign is not to wake up government(ofcourse we will be happy if it wakes up), but our primary interest is to make PEOPLE realise they deserve better, PEOPLE realise they should hope, PEOPLE raise their expectations.

This campaign is PEOPLE's aspirations oriented, not against government or other political Parties.

During each elections, we always see political parties making non-issues as Political campaign issues. That should change. But how without people's aspirations improved? That's precisely the reason why we take up this campaign.

We want the Mandal dwellers believe that their places should be made inhabitable, and that should be the agenda of campaign in next elections. This is the sole aim of this campaign.

How you join the Mission of 1000 new towns???

There are primarily 2 ways one can support this campaign.

1. Join us as Paid Volunteers to campaign for 1000 Towns. Why we pay you? Often people hypocritically think that social workers have to give up their personal life and responsibilities. Yes, it is true that good hearted men feel very sorry for the sufferings in the society the same way as they would when their own friends suffer. We believe that social Servicing volunteers should not have to abandon their personal responsibilities to fulfill societal responsibilities. We will offer respectable donation to maintain their families while they are working for the society.

2. You could join us as supporters, collaborators and inspirers. You could support the project monetarily in giving donations to volunteers, transportation costs, other expenses. You could lend your valuable suggestions. You could also act as fundraisers in your respective localities for the project.

It is our golden opportunity to serve democracy, our society and our beloved Republic Together.

Do you want to join this historical Second Independence Struggle of India?

Campaign for 1000 new Small Towns

In a democracy change is possible only when citizens aspire it. Due to abominable levels of persistent corruption, people stopped aspiring. We must rekindle hope in average man. Hope that their villages need not be bereft of all prosperity, hope that their children can get quality education in their own village, hope that they do not have to migrate to make a living, hope that they can stay healthy in their own village and hope that they can express themselves. This is the campaign for 1000 new small towns in 1000 Mandals of Andhra Pradesh.

How does the campaign work?

A dedicated group of volunteers travel from potential future town after future town and campaign with the Locals that it takes too little money for the government to completely transform their village into a modern small town. They will reason with the villagers that if they hope for better future, better future is theirs.

The Volunteers will ask the villagers why should they travel 30-40 KM if someone gets a heart attack before they can find proper treatment? Why not there is a super-speciality hospital in a mandal? Why do their children have to migrate to a farther city in want of education when Quality Educational Institutions can be set up in their own Mandal? If crops fail one year, why do the farmers have no alternative self-employment schemes or small scale industry possibilities? Why can not a village be connected to neighbouring villages with roads and transport facilities sothat commerce can prosper. The volunteers will rekindle the hope that all this transformation is possible only if they hope transforming their big village in Mandal into a town.

The volunteers of 1000 New towns Campaign will start dialogue process between Government and villagers by encouraging villagers to write to Government of Andhra Pradesh to spend 1/20000 part of each year budget in their mandal. Is it so unfair request?????? Mandals who constitute 75% of state's population, can't they demand for just a 5% of state income invested in their villages?

Too long has the villagers tolerated negligence. They will find new platform to pitch their feedback to government in Loksatta's 1000 new towns campaign.

The campaign Begins................

why we need 1000 new small towns

Politicians have become masters, people have become slaves. Large percentage of every penny spent by the Government is stolen by politicians directly or indirectly. Politics have become the art of Corrupt. Politicians have no interest in alleviating poverty and wealth creation for People. In order to perpetuate this master-slave bond, politicians give 'free current, free rice, free money, etc' as if people cannot have self-respect and earn what they need if proper environment is created. They do not have plans to uplift society so that people can live with self-respect. Poor people are never given opportunity to get educated, raise and fulfill their potential. Enough is enough.

Common man today aspires self-rule and self-respect and from this desire arises Loksatta (The People Power) Party. While a part of educated previleged society is starting to dream big, rural and impoverished sections of society find it too difficult to even make a living. Loksatta understands that the benefits of riches of India should be shared with all sections of Society including Rural India.

A town typically has all the basic infrastructure facilities

• Super-speciality hospital
• Schools, colleges
• Small Scale Industries
• Roads & Transport facilities
• Marketing Facilities

Ideally every village should have all these amenities. However the above said traits of Politicians never really allowed any distributed Growth. Only a few cities prospered and villages are becoming increasingly uninhabitable by modern standards. So, Transforming atleast one Village in each Mandal will ensure atleast one economical hub in each mandal so that people in the Mandal need not migrate for mere living.

Is it financially viable for State's Exchequer to build 1000 new towns?

Each year, Rs 6 Crores can be allocated to each of 1000 villages, meaning Rs 6000 Crores from a budget of over Rs 1 Lakh Crores(merely 6%). Dont these Mandal dwellers who constitute 75% of total population deserve 6% direct investment for their livelihood? Only a cruel government could deny them that. Loksatta will remind people of their deprived rights, challenge government of its indifference.

1000 new Towns for Prosperous AP

A 60 year old Republic is helplessly waiting for its children to stand up against inequalities, tyranny and corruption. An inclusive growth is the need of the hour. Villagers no more can die due to lack of Hospitals, their children should not be deprived of education due to lack of Educational Institutions, they should not be forced to migrate to fill their stomachs. Andhra Pradesh will lead India to this new future, Loksatta will make this happen.

Loksatta fights to urbanize 1000 villages distributed across 1000 mandals of Andhra Pradesh, making sure each of the future Towns to have Super-speciality hospitals, Quality educational Institutions, Small scale Industries for ensuring employment to all, roads and other infrastructure to improve trade, and Agriclincs to prosper agriculture. All it takes is Rs 6 Crores for each village each year from a budget of over Rs 1 Lakh Crores.

Possibility to earn decently, get educated, get medically treated when sick are the fundamental rights of every citizen and LOKSATTA will ensure them. We pledge to overcome the tyranny of corrupt politicians, we will demonstrate the power of democracy, we will transform 1000 villages into 1000 towns.