Poverty eradication, ₹3,000 pension, jobs for students among LDF vows in manifesto to Kerala elections

ERadicating out-and-out(a) poorness, ₹3,000 monthly societal welfare pensions, jobs for every pupil in Kerala, and serving homeless people were among the promises made by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in its manifesto unveiled by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Kozhikode on Thursday.The LDF is making a bid for a third consecutive stint at power. Its manifesto promised to continue the development initiatives undertaken in various key sectors including health, education, infrastructure and agriculture, and assuring new initiatives for marginalised sections in an effort to build a ‘nava Keralam’ (New Kerala).“The experience of the last decade shows that the confidence of the society has risen and a new path for development has been carved out. We have been able to overcome all major challenges. We have a good vision for the way forward,” said CM Pinarayi Vijayan.The manifesto put forward 950 proposals codified into a 60-point programme across sectors. One of the key promises was eliminating absolute poverty -- when households lack minimum income or resources to meet basic needs -- and lifting around 500,000 families out of poverty on the basis of scientific studies, a continuation of the LDF government’s earlier resolve to eliminate extreme poverty. The government claimed to have helped 64,006 families out of extreme poverty, identified as part of multidimensional checks on food, health, income and housing.Also Read: HT interview: Congress is a feeder organisation of BJP, says CPI(M)’s MA BabyWith rising unemployment among graduates and the youth in Kerala, the LDF vowed jobs for every student through campus placements. The manifesto said that 60,000 students received jobs in FY 2025-26 as part of an experimental project of ‘Vijnana Keralam’. The project will be implemented statewide, it said, and that students willing to get skilled for certain jobs will be given ”connect to work” scholarships earlier announced by the LDF government. The LDF also promised to increase the share of employed women, from the current 30% to 50%, through initiatives envisaged by Kudumbashree, the women self-help programme. To be noted, only 30% of women who are of job-seeking age are currently employed.The ruling coalition promised to hike social welfare pensions from the current ₹2,000 to ₹3,000, undertake efforts for a north-south high-speed railway corridor with the help of the Union government, take up new Metro projects in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode and ensure supply of piped water to every household in the state.Over the last 10 years, 500,000 homes were built under the LIFE Mission project, it said. The LIFE Mission 2.0 project will be started to provide homes for remaining families and make the state free of homeless people.Also Read: Meme icon, maverick mind, too cool to be CM: How Shashi Tharoor is key for Congress in Kerala elections 2026The LDF manifesto promised to implement a universal health insurance scheme with limitless treatment benefits. Currently, 4.2 million beneficiaires avail benefits under the state-run Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhathi.The ruling LDF, if voted back to power, also pledged to set up an independent body for media monitoring and fact-checking.