CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami promised that if the party wins the assembly elections and forms the government, it will distribute free refrigerators to all rice ration card holders and increase reservation for government school students clearing NEET to pursue medical education from 7.5% to 10%.Releasing the AIADMK’s election manifesto on Tuesday, which lists 297 assurances under 31 heads, EPS called it a ‘roadmap to governance’. “The manifesto is an action plan for the next five years that realizes the needs and pain of every person in Tamil Nadu and fulfills their aspirations,” he told reporters in the presence of senior leaders at the party headquarters. The manifesto gave the slogan “Pathukappana Tamilagam, Paarpotram Valarchi” (Safe Tamil Nadu, Laudable Development).The manifesto also included other EPS announcements made during election campaigns over the past few months, such as doubling the monthly cash distribution for women from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 and a one-time relief of Rs 10,000 to cushion the impact of rising prices. It promises free bus travel for men, the benefit of which has been extended to women by the DMK government. EPS described the party’s manifesto as “the hero of the election”.The announcement of free refrigerators assumes significance as it is targeted at around 2.22 crore rice ration card holders across the state. On the promise of increasing the 7.5% reservation to 10%, the EPS said it would benefit many government school students aiming to study medicine.Notably, some of the assurances made by the EPS during the 2021 assembly elections, including free washing machines, were missing this time. AIADMK has promised Rs 3,500 MSP for paddy.The promise of providing free LPG cylinders has been reduced from six a year to three in 2021. The manifesto said that IVF treatment in the healthcare sector will be brought under the Mukhyamantri Swasthya Bima Yojana. Additionally, households installing solar panels will get a subsidy of up to ₹30,000 for a 1 kW unit.It outlined infrastructure plans including setting up an international cricket stadium in Coimbatore, expediting metro rail projects in Madurai and Coimbatore and fast-tracking the proposed metro link between Kelambakkam and Chennai International Airport. It also stressed the setting up of a special anti-drug task force to curb ganja and other banned substances in the state. The AIADMK promised that crop loans taken through cooperative societies would be waived off, the MSP for paddy would be fixed at ₹3,500 per quintal, and steps would be taken to ensure a remunerative price of ₹4,500 per tonne for sugarcane. EPS promised to pay compensation of ₹25 lakh to fishermen who died during fishing operations.