PATNA, Sept. 29 -- The manifesto committee of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc has prepared a draft document, hailing it as the "blueprint for Bihar's resurgence" with pledge of reforms in employment, women's welfare, education and social equity, directly accusing the NDA of fostering unemployment, inequality and neglect of marginalized communities. The manifesto builds on the bloc's "Ati-Pichhda Nyay Sankalp" (Resolution for justice to Extremely Backward Classes or EBCs), released on September 25 during a major event in Patna attended by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, VIP chief Mukesh Sahani and Left leaders. The alliance aims to woo EBCs, who constitute 36% of the state's population according to the 2023 caste census, positioning itself as the true advocate for the underprivileged. Central to the manifesto is the 'first job guarantee programme', initially announced by Rahul Gandhi in March 2024 as part of the national Congress agenda but tailored to address Bihar's youth crisis. Targeting graduates, intermediate pass-outs, ITI trainees and diploma holders in technical courses, the scheme offers a 12-month apprenticeship in public or private sectors with an annual stipend of Rs.1 lakh (approximately Rs.8,500 monthly), adjustable for skills and inflation. Gandhi, speaking at recent rallies, described it as an "investment in Bihar's future," pledging to generate 10 lakh opportunities in the first year to combat the annual migration of over 20 lakh young Biharis seeking work elsewhere. Drawing from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), it extends to urban skilled jobs, featuring a state portal for applications, MSME partnerships and pathways to permanent roles. Women's empowerment forms another key pillar, with the "Mai Behan Maan Yojana" (MBMY) promising Rs.2,500 monthly direct transfers to economically disadvantaged women from EBC, SC, ST, OBC and other vulnerable groups earning below Rs.2 lakh annually. Launched amid Bihar's agrarian challenges, the scheme targets over 2 crore beneficiaries, including widows and single mothers, with funding from subsidy rationalisation and boosted GST revenues. Tejashwi unveiled this scheme, included in the common manifesto, in December last year at a rally in Patna, where attendees registered via a helpline. It mirrors Delhi's successful model but adds Bihar-specific perks like free LPG and skill vouchers. Complementing this is a land reform allocating 3-5 decimals of cultivable land to landless women heads of households, prioritising rural (5 decimals) for farming or housing and urban (3 decimals) plots, with a commitment to survey 50 lakh families in 100 days. In the education sector, the manifesto commits to implementing the 2007 Muchkund Dubey Committee recommendations on universalising schooling. It had been ignored for 18 years under the NDA governments. The report, chaired by the former diplomat, advocates a Common School System with neighbourhood schools accessible to all, dismantling class divides between private and government institutions. It calls for recruiting 5.7 lakh teachers over five years with enhanced training and salaries, overhauling infrastructure like labs and digital access with Rs.10,000 crore annually and modernising curricula to include vocational skills from Class 6 alongside Bihar's cultural heritage. The bloc extends Right to Education quotas to 50% in private schools for disadvantaged groups and mandates reservations in all private higher institutions, addressing Bihar's 25% dropout rate and 40% female illiteracy. Gandhi lambasted the NDA for 15% budget cuts, promising education as the "engine of development." The Nyay Sankalp underpins the manifesto with a 10-point EBC agenda, including 30% reservations in municipal and panchayat posts, breaching the 50% cap proportional to population with Ninth Schedule protection, and an EBC Protection Act akin to the SC/ST Atrocities law featuring fast-track courts and Rs.5 lakh victim compensation. It also offers 25% quotas in contracts up to Rs.25 crore, priority loans for entrepreneurs, free land for homeless EBC, SC, and ST families, and a regulatory authority for enforcement. These address EBC frustrations with Nitish Kumar's unfulfilled sub-categorisation promises, with Tejashwi vowing scheme audits. Beyond these, the draft envisions repealing anti-farmer laws, securing special category status for Bihar and a Rs.1 lakh crore infrastructure boost for roads, irrigation and flood control....