PM Narendra Modi unveils three petro projects ahead of Bihar polls

In the run-up to the Assembly polls in Bihar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated three petroleum sector projects, gave a big thumbs up to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and reached out to voters by calling the state a “powerhouse of talent”. 

Modi’s praise of alliance partner Kumar comes weeks ahead of the elections — likely in October-November — as he dedicated three petroleum projects worth Rs 900 crore to people. These included a gas pipeline that extended from Durgapur in West Bengal to Banka in Bihar.

Banka was also the beneficiary of an LPG bottling plant while another such unit is located at Harsiddhi in East Champaran district.

“I had the opportunity of flagging off the work on extension of the gas pipeline a year-and-half ago. I am delighted to see its completion. The country and Bihar have come out of an era when a project was announced and a generation had to wait for its completion. Nitish ji has played an important role in ushering in this change in the state,” Modi said.

In his trademark style, the prime minister began his speech with a few sentences in Angika, the dialect spoken in Banka and adjoining districts.

He marvelled at the gas pipeline project which was no mean feat" as it involved working across a stretch of nearly 200 km of difficult terrain dotted with many rivers, dense forests and hills.

I would like to use the terms gas-based industry and petro-connectivity, which may sound very technical but actually impact the lives of the common people, he said, addressing the function virtually from the national capital.

Just imagine what would have been the situation if people were to keep venturing out in search of wood and other fuel for cooking their meals. The need is no longer there thanks to schemes like the Ujjwala Yojana which has ensured that LPG reaches households of the poorest of the poor," he said while talking about the coronavirus outbreak.