Nitish Kumar marches demanding special status for Bihar

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today led a protest march to push for a special status for the state.

Kumar walked for 6 km from his residence to Gandhi Maidan in Patna.

"Our fight is for the right of the state. We will continue this campaign till we achieve it," Kumar told media here.

They (Central Government) have given a special status to Seemandhra. But why only Seemandhra? When it comes to Bihar, the demand is put in cold storage," he said.

Kumar, called for a state-wide shutdown, demanding special status for the state after the central government granted a special category to newly formed state of Seemandhra.

People protested, burnt tyres, waved their party flags and shouted slogans saying that there was no stopping them till they got a special status for the state .

They also halted trains as a part of their 'Rail Roko' (train blockade) programme in Patna and Jahanabad district.

"The people of Bihar, especially the youth and students, want their rights. Bihar is underdeveloped since many years now there has been a scarcity of resources. Bihar has not got facilities it deserves and which is why Bihar has reached an underdeveloped stage. The need is now to get a special status for Bihar. Youngsters and students will definitely have this right soon," said Gunjan Patel, a protester.

Reportedly, the Raghuram Rajan Committee had last year identified Bihar as one of the least developed states.

The committee suggested splitting states into three categories and subsumed the previous special category criteria for providing special assistance to poorer states.

To put pressure on the central government, the JD-U held a rally in Patna last year. The party also collected over 10 million signatures to back their demand for special status.