Tag: Nitish Kumar

After 33% Salary Hike, Bihar Lawmakers to Get Plush Bungalows at Govt Rate Ahead of Assembly Polls

Source: news18.com

Patna: As a pre-poll gift, the Bihar lawmakers will be entitled to purchase residential plots of two kathas each at a rate fixed by the state government. The Bihar State Cooperative Federation and Bihar Land Development Bank will be the nodal bodies to make available the required land in Ashiananagar area of the state capital to the Swablambi Grih Nirman Sahyog Samiti headed by state Parliamentary Affairs minister Shrawan Kumar. Bihar cooperative minister Rana Randhir is its secretary and BJP legislator Sachindra Kumar is its treasurer.

The former and present legislators having no house in Patna will be eligible for becoming members of the new legislators’ cooperative. There is a virtual scramble among the former and present legislators to fill the membership forms. “So far, 100 members have filled their membership forms. The other formalities will begin after registration of the cooperative society,” said Shrawan Kumar.

The rush among the lawmakers to get a house in Patna emanates from the fact that many of them are not sure to return to the state assembly in the changed political scenario after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Many of them may not be repeated as candidates by their respective political parties.

A residential colony of legislators of Bihar already exists near the veterinary college which is home to veteran leaders like Radhanandan Jha, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Ram Vilas Paswan, Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Abdul Bari SIddiqui, Nand Kishore Yadav and others. But several plots in this cooperative were sold to other legislators, exchanged and put on rent in utter violation of the cooperative society’s rules.

The state government has recently constructed swanky duplex bungalows for sitting legislators with state-of-the-art facilities at an estimated cost of nearly Rs 600 crore. There are, at present, 318 lawmakers, including 243 members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) and 75 members of the legislative council (MLCs) in Bihar.

The plush government bungalows would be allotted according to constituency numbers of the members. Many legislators, who used to stay outside on rent ever since the old residential flats were demolished, would be given possession by December this year.

There was a windfall for legislators in November last year when the Nitish Kumar government had approved 33 per cent hike in their salary and substantial increase in their allowances, making their salary structure no less attractive than the industry’s Chief Executive Officers (CEOs).

At present, the Bihar lawmakers are entitled for a basic salary of Rs 40,000 per month, besides constituency allowance of Rs 50,000, stationary of Rs 10,000 and Rs 30,000 per month for keeping private secretaries. They are also entitled to travel coupons worth Rs 3 lakh per year and vehicle loan up to Rs 15 lakh.

The government had also enhanced the pension amount of former lawmakers. Former legislators with one year tenure in the legislature get monthly pension of Rs 35,000. Their pension amount increases at Rs 3,000 per month for every additional year served as legislators.

The salary and perks of the Bihar legislators were increased before this in 2014 when Jitan Ram Manjhi was the chief minister. The then government had also hiked the monthly salary of the chief minister and all its ministers. The government also decided to provide lifetime facilities of eight private staff to all former chief ministers benefitting all the former chief ministers, including Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi and Jagannath Mishra.

The legislators continue to get monetary benefits despite the fact that quite many of them own huge assets running into several crores. According to a report by the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR), altogether 162 out of 243 MLAs of Bihar are crorepati. Of them, 14 have assets over Rs 10 crore.

Patna Metro project on fast-track! Bihar CM Nitish Kumar asks officials to start work at the earliest

Source: financialexpress.com

Patna Metro: Commuting across Patna to get easier with the upcoming metro project in the city! Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has asked officials to start the work on Patna Metro project at the earliest and also to ensure adequate action while carrying out the land acquisition for the proposed metro corridor. The Chief Minister directed the officials of the Urban Development and Housing department to start the work, following a presentation given by the Principal Secretary of Urban Development and Housing department on ‘Patna Metro Rail Project’. The Principal Secretary updated Kumar about the progress the Patna Metro project has made so far, according to a PTI report.

According to Nitish Kumar, the upcoming Patna Metro project, which is likely to be developed at a cost of around Rs 13,000 crore, will give “new speed” to Patna city. Last year on October 9, the state cabinet approved its Detailed Project Report (DPR) and sent it for the Centre’s approval. PM Narendra Modi-led Cabinet approved the Patna Metro project in February this year. The foundation stone for the big infrastructure project was laid by PM Modi in the same month.

Patna Metro route, stations

Under the first phase of the project, the Patna Metro will have two corridors. The first metro corridor will be between Saguna Mor-Bailey Road-Patna Junction- Mithapur bus stand. While the second corridor will be from Patna Junction to the proposed bus stand, located at Bairiya on Patna-Gaya road. Some of the major Patna Metro stations will be at Gandhi Maidan, Dakbungalow Chowk, Ashok Rajpath, Saguna More, Bailey More, Danapur.

It is being said that the Patna Metro project will provide an alternative mode of communication to a population of 26.23 lakh. The metro project will also focus on the last-mile connectivity as there will be multi-modal integration with railway stations as well as ISBT. Additionally, Patna Metro is also likely to run feeder network of bus, Intermediate Public Transport (IPT) and Non-Motorised Transport (NMT). The project is expected to be complete in the next five years.

Nitish Kumar Promotes Electric Vehicles, Reaches Bihar Assembly in Tata Tigor EV

Source: news18.com

Seeking to send out a message of environment preservation, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar arrived at the state assembly in an electric car. As his vehicle arrived at the porch of the historic building that houses the bicameral legislature, he was presented with a bouquet by Transport Department Principal Secretary Sanjay Agarwal. While climbing the flight of stairs that lead into the assembly premises, Kumar was heard saying, “It is a pleasure travelling in this car. It is almost soundless and its design feels very comfortable while sitting inside”.

Talking to reporters on the occasion, Agarwal said the car, which has been manufactured by Tata Motors, can cover a distance of 150 km upon being charged for four hours. “Factoring in the cost of electricity it can be said that the car, which is priced at Rs 11 lakh, costs 80 paise per kilometre. Besides economic viability, it also causes zero pollution. “We are in the process of installing charging points at 1, Anney Marg (the CM’s residence which is about a kilometre and a half away) and here at the Vidhan Sabha,” Agrawal added.

All such vehicles would have number plates in green to highlight their eco-friendly nature, the principal secretary said. Replying to queries from journalists who thrust their microphones inside the car as soon as the chief minister alighted, driver Ganesh said, “It is very easy to drive. There is no need to change gears frequently.” In the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier this month, an additional tax benefit of Rs 1.5 lakh was announced on payment of interest towards loans taken for the purchase of electric cars. It was seen as a measure taken by the Narendra Modi government to promote the use of eco-friendly cars.

Nitish Kumar reaches Bihar assembly by electric car

Source: indiatoday.in

Seeking to send out a message of environment preservation, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday arrived at the state assembly in an electric car.

As his vehicle arrived at the porch of the historic building that houses the bicameral legislature, he was presented with a bouquet by Transport Department Principal Secretary Sanjay Agarwal.

While climbing the flight of stairs that lead into the assembly premises, Kumar was heard saying, “It is a pleasure travelling in this car. It is almost soundless and its design feels very comfortable while sitting inside”.

Talking to reporters on the occasion, Agarwal said the car, which has been manufactured by Tata Motors, can cover a distance of 150 km upon being charged for four hours.

“Factoring in the cost of electricity it can be said that the car, which is priced at Rs 11 lakh, costs 80 paise per kilometer. Besides economic viability, it also causes zero pollution.

“We are in the process of installing charging points at 1, Anney Marg (the CM’s residence which is about a kilometer and a half away) and here at the Vidhan Sabha,” Agrawal added.

All such vehicles would have number plates in green to highlight their eco-friendly nature, the principal secretary said.

Replying to queries from journalists who thrust their microphones inside the car as soon as the chief minister alighted, driver Ganesh said, “It is very easy to drive. There is no need to change gears frequently.”

In the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier this month, an additional tax benefit of Rs 1.5 lakh was announced on payment of interest towards loans taken for purchase of electric cars.

It was seen as a measure taken by the Narendra Modi government to promote the use of eco-friendly cars.

Statistics don’t lie: Why Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is miles ahead of other contenders

Source: dailyo.in

Though the Bihar Assembly polls are scheduled for 2020, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) has already declared Tejashwi Yadav as its chief ministerial candidate. While it appeared a little hasty and ill-timed for a party that drew a blank in the Lok Sabha polls, many argued that RJD’s declaration was more for intra-party consumption, and not for the people of Bihar. However, RJD’s apparent taste for Bihar’s top job has prompted many backroom boys across political lines to take a closer look at the Lok Sabha poll results. This is obviously an attempt to find whether RJD’s desire carries any weight in Bihar and if the political pecking order in the state has any new entrant.

A fresh data analysis of votes has been pulled out to assess if the poll outcome also has some hidden meaning attached to it. While statistics are notorious for not telling the whole story, the data analysis of voting during the Lok Sabha polls in Bihar has really thrown up some surprising assessments. The biggest surprise first: The BJP, which bagged the maximum votes in the state in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, is not the biggest gainer if you compare performance of political parties during the last two elections held in Bihar.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP bagged 96,18,904 votes in Bihar. In the 2015 Assembly polls, the saffron tally was 93,08,015 votes. Clearly, despite their impressive showing in Bihar, having won all 17 seats contested in 2019, the BJP has gained just about 3.10 lakh votes from 2015. So, who is the biggest gainer in Bihar? The results of a data analysis — based on a comparison of the last two elections held in Bihar — are convincingly in favour of Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) or JD(U). In 2015, Nitish’s party had bagged 64,17,041 votes. In 2019, its vote tally shot up to 89,02,719 votes. If you compare the two performances, it becomes clear that Nitish’s party has added more than 24.85 lakh voters in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls.

The JD(U)’s leap of 38.73% over its 2015 tally is staggering. If we compare the votes gained by the two ruling parties in Bihar (JD(U)’s 24.85 lakh votes to BJP’s 3.10 lakh), it becomes clear that the jump in Nitish’s vote tally is eight times more than that of the BJP. More surprises come to fore when the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)’s vote tally of 2019 is compared to the number of votes it polled in 2015. The RJD bagged 62,70,107 votes in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls compared to 69,95,509 votes in the 2015 Assembly polls. So, the RJD has lost just 7.25 lakh votes in 2019 against its performance in 2015. The figure, however, also reveals a significant insight.

While the JD(U) has raised its vote tally by nearly 39% over its 2015 performance, its electoral gains have not come from the losses of its opponents. The majority of additional votes that Nitish’s party has gained in Bihar appear to have come from new voters. Incidentally, since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Bihar has topped the country’s tally when it comes to adding new voters to the electoral roll. The figure for new voters in Bihar was 61,33,940, whereas West Bengal with 55.02 lakh new voters and Rajasthan with 43.45 lakh new voters, were second and third, respectively. 

“Assuming that about 60% of Bihar’s new voters actually voted in the Lok Sabha polls, the number comes up to 36 lakh. If we place this figure against the 24.85 lakh new votes that Nitish Kumar’s party has added to its kitty in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, it seems that nearly 70% of the new voters have voted for JD(U),” says a senior IAS officer. “It is clear. While JD(U) has kept its support base intact, it has also added majority of the new voters in Bihar to its vote tally. The reasons are abundantly clear. The new voters, the youth of Bihar, are smart enough to identify the leader whom they can count on for vision and leadership,” says JD(U) spokesman Rajeev Ranjan Prasad. “They [Bihari youth] can differentiate between a run-of-the-mill politician and a statesman like Nitish Kumar”.

“This explains why majority of the new voters have voted for the chief minister’s party,” Prasad adds. The assumptions are well supported by Bihar’s electoral record as Nitish has, indeed, remained the fulcrum of Bihar politics since his party defeated Lalu Prasad’s RJD in the October 2005. From 2005 to 2019, Bihar has seen four Assembly and three Lok Sabha polls. Barring the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the winner always had Nitish by his side in six of those seven elections. Though Nitish always talks about pooling all sections together, JD(U) sources admit that around 30% extremely backward castes (EBCs), and 15 per cent Mahadalits (the most marginalised among the Scheduled Castes) form the nucleus of the JD(U)’s strength.

Together, these two social sections have over 150 castes, constituting nearly 45% voters in Bihar. If RJD’s solid support base among the Yadavs, the single-largest caste group in Bihar with 14% of the population, combined with a sizeable chunk of 16% Muslim votes, has failed to stop Nitish in successive state elections, it was largely because the Bihar CM had similar consolidation of EBCs and Mahadalits behind him. Now, it seems the new voters have also preferred Nitish over others.

Riots have gone down by 32 per cent in Bihar: CM Nitish Kumar

Source: indiatoday.in

ihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday claimed the incidence of riots has gone down in the state, indicating that social harmony has grown, but admitted the rise in the number of killings and robberies was a matter of concern.

Addressing the state assembly during a debate on the budget for the home department, Kumar also expressed concern over the growing influence of social media and pointed out that unverified rumours shared on these platforms have often contributed to law and order problems in Bihar.

“If we look at the crime figures for January-May this year and compare these with the corresponding period in 2018, we find riots have gone down by 32 per cent and kidnapping for ransom once rampant in Bihar has dipped by 44 per cent. There has also been a reduction in the incidence of burglary,” Kumar said.

“However, when we look at the figures for murder and dacoity, there has been a rise of two per cent and eight per cent respectively,” Kumar admitted.

He clarified “all riots do not involve a clash between members of two communities. Technically, any attempt by a group of five persons or more to disrupt law and order qualifies as a riot. However, a reduction in the number does indicate that there has been a growth in social harmony”.

About the rise in murders, he said it has come to “our notice that a large number of killings follow a land dispute. In addition to whatever can be done directly through the law and order machinery, we are also working towards reducing land disputes by introducing measures like online mutation of land records.

Moreover, we are committed to further strengthening the law and order machinery. We are working on having separate units for law and order and investigation at all police stations and the process is likely to be complete by August 15 this year,” Kumar said.

He also told the assembly that police personnel were being provided with upgraded facilities, including modern weaponry, but at the same time those found guilty of laxity in performing duties were also being punished.

“A total of 127 such lax police officials, of whom more than two dozens are of Deputy SP rank, are facing departmental action,” the chief minister said.

Kumar also lamented the role played by social media in giving rise to social tensions, saying there is no accountability and these platforms have come to acquire a wider reach than even newspapers and channels.

“However, we try to keep such instances under check as far as possible without infringing upon the freedom of expression guaranteed to citizens by the Constitution.”

The Home department budget was subsequently passed by the House amid a walkout staged by opposition parties like RJD, Congress and CPI(ML).

MLAs belonging to these parties alleged that they were not satisfied with the explanation given by the government on the deteriorating law and order situation in the state.

Bihar constrained by low per capita income, needs special status: Nitish

Source: thehindu.com

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on July 12 told the assembly that his government felt hamstrung when it came to hiking the amount paid to beneficiaries of welfare schemes, a reason why he has been pressing for the special category status.

Mr. Kumar also insisted that the State’s per capita income was “significantly lower” than the national average.

“You talk about Haryana and Tamil Nadu. While comparing the amount paid (to beneficiaries of social welfare schemes) there, please also look at their per capita income vis–vis ours,” he said.

“As a matter of fact, Bihar’s per capita income stands at less than Rs 40,000, which is significantly lower than the national average. This is the primary reason why we seek special status,” Mr. Kumar added, while responding to a calling attention motion introduced by a host of opposition leaders, including veteran Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MLA Abdul Bari Siddiqui.

The motion had sought to draw the government’s attention towards the fact that the amount paid under welfare schemes in Bihar was far less than that doled out by the states of Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

For a pension scheme, the amount paid to beneficiaries in the state stood at ₹400 per month, while in Tamil Nadu and Telangana it was ₹1000, in Haryana it was ₹1800 and in Andhra Pradesh ₹2000, it said.

Demand for special status for Bihar arose with the creation of Jharkhand in 2000, which deprived the state of its mineral-rich, relatively more industrialized and urbanized southern districts.

It grew stronger in 2005 with ascendance to power of Mr. Kumar, who has often made the “special status’ issue a poll plank. After the 14th Finance Commission did away with the provision, the Chief Minister has, on many occasions, urged the Centre to make necessary amendments so that Bihar could get its due.

“You (Siddiqui) have served as the state finance minister. I wish you had taken our financial situation into account before raising your question. You are comparing Bihar with states where the per capita income is higher than the national average,” Mr. Kumar said, turning towards the RJD leader.

“Moreover, please do keep in mind that Bihar is the first state in the country to have introduced its own universal pension scheme – Mukhyamantri Vriddhajan Pension Yojana,” he added.

Unlike other programmes, the pension scheme does not exclude those above the poverty line, he asserted.

“All men and women, not drawing any other pension, shall be eligible to receive the benefit. This would put an annual burden of Rs 1800 crore and even though we need funds for development works, we are committed to implementing the scheme,” Mr. Kumar said.

Talking to reporters outside the assembly, Mr. Siddiqui, however, appeared dissatisfied with the CM’s reply.

“I am glad that the chief minister took seriously the issue raised by me. But his emphasis on the state’s financial situation leaves the basic question raised in our motion unanswered. The state’s budget this year stood at about Rs 2.05 lakh crore. This is a significant rise in comparison with what the size of budget was a few years ago,” he claimed.

“There has not been a commensurate rise in the welfare benefits being extended to the vulnerable sections of the society. So, we had sought to know whether these matters were not high on the government’s list of priorities,” Mr. Siddiqui added.

People travel 46 kilometres free of cost from Rajgir to Tilaiya in Bihar

Source: indiatvnews.com

About 46 kilometres of the train journey is absolutely free for the people from Rajgir to Tilaiya. It is not a gift from Railways but the common people have created this system. 

There is a junction, a station and five halts between Rajgir and Tilaiya. There is no arrangement for buying tickets in all these places and neither is the ticket collector also the train stops without any prior signals. Apart from Rajgir and Tilaiya, there is no restriction on people’s movement.

The Railways have abandoned the maintenance of these seven stations. There are bushes grown over the platforms and devices have been stolen. This railway route was approved by Nitish Kumar while being the Railway Minister and the project started in 2002. On June 19, 2010, CM Nitish Kumar inaugurated it.

On this railway route, there are two passenger trains, one is Danapur-Tailaiya and the other is Bakhtiyarpur-Gaya DMU, also one and half dozen goods trains are running. All these trains give a blow while crossing the station.

In 2012, the ticket counter was inaugurated at Jethian Railway Station. The responsibility of collecting tickets was given to the private company. In Jethian, 3 Assistant Station Master, 4 Porter and Gangman, RPF was also deployed. But the private company returned from the fear of commuters when the trains were getting late.

From Rajgir to Tilaiya, there are Negpur, Natesar, Jethian, Sarasu, Oro, Mahmudpur and Sitarampur stations and halts. Signal lights at all these places are not working.

According to media sources, there is a shortage of staff in the railway at these stations. The process of restoration is going on after which the vacant places will be filled. 

BJP leader from Jharkhand joins JD(U) in presence of Nitish Kumar

Source: hindustantimes.com

Several political leaders from the neighbouring state of Jharkhand, including one from BJP, joined JD(U) on Sunday, following the party’s decision to go solo in the upcoming assembly elections in four states.

Those inducted into the JD (U) fold by national president and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar were Prem Kataruka, former state secretary-cum-spokesperson of BJP, Manoj Yadav of JVM (P) and Arun Mandal and Prabhat Kumar Prabhakar of JMM.

Till now, as an unspoken rule, Bihar allies JD (U) and BJP have exercised restraint in allowing leaders from joining each other’s parties.

The notable crossover of Sanjay Jha from BJP into JD (U) camp in the state was an exception. Jha, who was elevated to the post of national general secretary, is now a minister.

Sunday’s development, viewed in the context of JD (U) turning down the ‘single berth’ offer in the union cabinet, is indicative that the party is not shy of triggering a political realignment in states ruled by its saffron ally. Jharkhand is one of the two BJP ruled states, other than Haryana, that goes to polls along with Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir later this year.

Arun Kumar Singh, in-charge of JD (U) affairs in Jharkhand, said that the joining of leaders will strengthen the party and help in providing a leg-up to its electoral prospects in the state, where voters are looking for an alternative.

That the Jharkhand state unit had already started its preparations on all the 81 assembly seats was evident from the claims of JD (U) state president Salkhan Murmu, who was pitching for Nitish-model of ‘Sushashan’ in his home state which, he believed, will usher development and also remove the friction between adivasi, moolvasi and others, so that people live in harmony.

Their optimism for a ‘good showing’ also stems from the rout faced by opposition parties—JMM, JVM (P), RJD and Congress—during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. “The JD (U) is in a position to provide a credible alternative to the tribals, minorities and others, particularly after the dismal electoral performance of the JMM-Congress combine,” he said.

Backing JD-U’s more than satisfactory poll performance in Arunachal Pradesh and the strong re-iteration that it was “not part of NDA outside Bihar,” a team of Prashant Kishor’s organisation has already landed in Ranchi to conduct an independent survey to assess the party’s electoral prospects in as many as 35 assembly seats in the first phase.

A BJP leader, not willing to be named, said that such things, ahead of elections, is a common phenomena and ‘disgruntled’ elementshave little or noimpact on final outcomeas voters remain wary and recent pollshave shown that theyreject ‘turncoats’ more often than not.

AES lens on Gaya now as 3 kids die

Source: hindustantimes.com

Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), the mystery disease that has claimed lives of 156 children across Bihar so far, has claimed four more lives during the last 24 hours, taking the toll to 160, health officials said.

While one child died at the Muzaffarpur’s Sri Krishna Medical College Hospital (SKMCH), the rest three succumbed to their ailment at Gaya’s Anugrah Narayan Magadh Medical College and Hospital (ANMCH).

Spread of AES from the state’s north to south is a matter of serious concern for the health department, which is already under fire for failing to contain AES deaths as the disease has been recurring every year during the extreme summer and causing much devastation.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar, while expressing serious concern over the death in the state assembly two days back, had said that experts from across India and even US had come up conflicting and incomplete findings on causes that lead to AES among children in Bihar.

ANMCH officials said at least six children were brought to the hospital, of which four showed AES symptoms while two were brought dead in the last 24 hours. The deceased, who were referred by primary health centres, were being treated for AES, official said.

Another one died on way to Patna.

Officials said that rest three patients of suspected AES are still undergoing treatment at the ANMCH and their conditions are said to be stable.

ANMCH superintendent Dr Vijay Krishna Prasad said blood samples of all the patients had been sent to the Rajendra Medical Research Institute in Patna for laboratory tests to ascertain the type of the disease. “At present, we have identified symptoms of Japanese encephalitis and AES, but the same can be confirmed only after the RMRI tests. We can just call it suspected encephalitis cases,” the ANMCH superintendent said.

He, however, said that the medical college is well equipped to counter the menace. “We have already created 30-bed ICU attached to the paediatric ward for AES patients. Besides, we have adequate medicines and experts to handle such cases,” the superintendent said.

Since JES generally strikes in a big way after the first showers across the Magadh division, the health department had earlier chalked out strategy to combat the situation. “There would no Muzaffarpur-like situation here as we are on high alert and patients are being promptly attended upon,” a health department official said.

“The Bihar government has announced Rs 50,000 compensation to the families that have lost their kids to AES. We are now preparing the patients’ records,” the superintendent said.

Meanwhile in Muzaffarpur, the epicentre of the disease, 24 AES afflicted children are currently undergoing treatment at the SKMCH while one is being treated at the Kejriwal Maternity Clinic.