Page 10 - Bihar Government

Bihar cabinet expansion: CM Nitish Kumar inducts 21 new ministers

From the JD (U), the ministers include Ashok Choudhary, Leshi Singh, Madan Sahni, Maheshwar Hazari, Sheila Kumari Mandal, Sunil Kumar, Jayant Raj, Zama Khan, and Ratnesh Sada

Nitish expands Bihar cabinet; inducts 21 ministers, including BJP leaders

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday expanded his cabinet, which is less than two months old, by inducting 21 ministers. The new inductees, including senior BJP leader and former deputy chief minister Renu Devi, were administered the oath of office by Governor Rajendra Arlekar at a ceremony in the Raj Bhavan. Other notable persons who were sworn in include Mangal Pandey and Neeraj Kumar Singh 'Bablu', both former ministers, belonging to BJP. Besides, Md Zama Khan, who became the lone Muslim in the cabinet, and the chief minister's confidant Ashok Chaudhary, who held cabinet berths earlier, were back as ministers. The fresh induction raises to 30 the total strength of the cabinet formed after the return of Kumar, who heads the JD(U), to the BJP-led NDA less than two months ago. Chants of 'Jai Shri Ram' by leaders of the BJP, which has returned to power, reverberated through the Raj Bhavan during the ceremony.

BPSC TRE 3.0 exam 2024: All about Bihar School Teacher recruitment exams

The Bihar Public Service Commission will hold the Bihar School Teacher Recruitment exam 3.0 from today. The BPSC TRE 3.0 tests will be of 2.5 hours and will be held in two shifts

Indian envoy to UK, other dignitaries meet Bihar CM Nitish in London

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is currently in London, was on Sunday paid a visit by Vikram K Doraiswami, the Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. Others who came to meet Kumar, who has been abroad for about a week, included Baba Mohinder Singh, the Jathedar of UK Seva Dal, a body of Sikhs, and a number of people from Bihar settled in Britain. According to the office of the chief minister, during the "courtesy call" from Doraiswami, Kumar shared with the envoy his impressions about the renowned science museum in London, which he had visited a few days ago. Kumar also told Doraiswami that a "science city" was coming up in Patna, and it has been named after former president APJ Abdul Kalam. The science city would, among other things, "highlight the contributions in science of ancient India", including the city of Pataliputra, the name by which Patna was known in the distant past. Kumar was greatly impressed with the water management techniques adopted in Scotland,

ED nabs man in Patna in money laundering case linked to illegal sand mining

The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Subhash Yadav, a man allegedly linked to the RJD, in Bihar's Patna in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal sand mining, official sources said on Sunday. The premises of Yadav and some others were being searched since Saturday as part of a case registered under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Yadav was arrested late on Saturday night and nearly Rs 2.3 crore cash was seized from various premises, the sources said. Half a dozen premises were searched by the central agency in and around Patna. Yadav is alleged to be involved in sand mining in Bihar and had contested elections on an RJD ticket in the past, according to the sources. The money laundering case stems from some FIRs registered by Bihar Police.

Bihar caste census an X-ray for country, step towards justice: Rahul Gandhi

"Count is our slogan because counting is the 'first step to justice'," Gandhi added

ED raids residence of Subhash Yadav, close aide of RJD supremo Lalu

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday raided multiple locations in Patna as part of an alleged illegal sand mining linked money laundering case, official sources said. The premises of a person identified as Subash Yadav are being searched as part of a case registered under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. About seven premises are being searched by the central agency in and around Patna, they said. Yadav is said to be involved in sand mining in Bihar and has contested election on an RJD ticket earlier, they said. The money laundering case stems from some FIRs filed by the Bihar Police earlier.

Bihar govt for amicable resolution with Raj Bhavan over univ jurisdictions

Seeking to downplay the stand-off between the Bihar education department and Raj Bhavan over their jurisdiction in state universities, the Nitish Kumar government on Thursday called for an amicable resolution to issues that might have cropped up. All stakeholders are determined to keep improving the academic atmosphere in the state-run academic institutions in Bihar, Education Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary said. "Everything is normal and smooth. If any issue crops up, it should be resolved amicably. All are working to create an environment conducive to academic growth by ensuring full utilisation of the existing infrastructural resources," he told PTI. The minister also said that the recent order to freeze bank accounts of all state-run universities has been put on hold. The development came after vice-chancellors did not attend a review meeting called by the education department on February 9. Earlier this month, the Raj Bhavan had also written to banks to overrule that order. Th

Bihar CM Nitish files his nomination for re-election to legislative council

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday filed his nomination papers for re-election to the state legislative council. Kumar, who is running for a fourth consecutive term, filed his nomination papers in the presence of a host of senior leaders of the ruling NDA, including his deputies Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, who belong to the BJP, and Rajiv Ranjan Singh "Lalan" whom he succeeded as the JD(U) national president. Besides Kumar, nomination papers were filed by his cabinet colleague Santosh Suman and JD(U) MLC Khalid Anwar. Suman's father Jitan Ram Manjhi, a former chief minister who heads Hindustani Awam Morcha, was also present. The Election Commission has announced biennial polls for 11 seats of the state legislative council, the terms of which would end in May. Of these, the JD(U) had held four, though following a diminution in its strength in the assembly, the party has given up its claim on two of the seats. Besides Kumar and Anwar, those from the JD(U) whos

PM to launch development projects worth over Rs 34,800 crore in Bihar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil development projects worth more than Rs 34,800 crore in Bihar on Saturday. Besides, the PM will unveil multiple projects in the oil and gas sector, worth about Rs 1.48 lakh crore, spread across various states from here, an official statement said. This will be Modi's first visit to Bihar since the BJP-led NDA got a shot in the arm with the return of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD(U). The PM will unveil multiple development projects worth Rs 21,400 crore in Aurangabad around 2.30 pm. He will then travel to Begusarai where he will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of projects worth more than Rs 13,400, the statement said. From the function in Begusarai, he will unveil the oil and gas sector projects which are spread across Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Punjab and Karnataka along with the KG Basin. Modi will dedicate the 'first oil' from the KG Basin to the nation and will flag off the first crude oil tanker

PM Modi to unveil multiple development projects in West Bengal, Bihar today

At Krishnanagar, the Prime Minister will inaugurate, dedicate to the nation and lay the foundation stone of several development projects related to sectors like power, rail and road

ED raids premises of RJD MLA, husband in money laundering case in Bihar

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday raided the premises of RJD MLA Kiran Devi, her husband and former legislator Arun Yadav and some others as part of a money laundering probe linked to alleged possession of disproportionate assets, official sources said. Kiran Devi is a sitting MLA of the Lalu Prasad-led Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD). She represents the Sandesh constituency in Bhojpur district. Arun Yadav represented the seat from 2015 to 2020. According to the sources, when ED sleuths reached Kiran Devi's residence on Tuesday morning, the MLA was not there. Searches were also conducted at the premises linked to the MLA in Bhojpur's Agiaon. Despite several attempts by PTI, the RJD MLA was not available for comments on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) action. The ED's money laundering case against Arun Yadav and Kiran Devi stems from a total of 16 FIRs filed by the Bihar Police at various police stations in Ara district. The agency filed a criminal case under the Prevention of Mone

Highlights: Car securing route for CM Yogi's cavalcade meets with accident

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Nitish Kumar maintained a record of turning back, says Tejashwi Yadav

"Nitish Kumar has maintained a record in turning back. At the same time, he called upon people to participate in the RJD rally organised in Patna on March 3."

Bihar govt, SIDBI join hands to collaborate on enhancing startup ecosystem

The Bihar government and the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) have signed an MoU in a bid to boost the startup ecosystem in the eastern state, officials said. The initiative is aimed at creating a conducive environment for startups and transforming Bihar into a startup hub, a SIDBI release said. "The Bihar Startup Fund Trust (BSFT) and SIDBI entered into an MoU to administer the Rs 50-crore Bihar Startup Scale-up Financing Fund' (BSSFF), it said. The BSFT is the nodal agency constituted by the Industries Department for implementation of the Bihar Startup Policy. Under the policy, the state government has set up the BSFT with an initial corpus of Rs 500 crore. Out of this, BSSFF has been established with an initial corpus of Rs 50 crore for scale-up funding support to startups, the release said.

Electricity will not be given for free: Nitish Kumar in state assembly

Pointing towards Bijendra Yadav (Energy Minister in Bihar Government), Nitish Kumar said that he is honest, listens to him. However, the opposition boycotted the budget speech

Can't provide free electricity to consumers in state, says Bihar CM

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday dismissed the opposition's demand for providing at least 200 units of free electricity to the poor and emphasised that electricity is already being supplied to consumers at highly subsidised rates. The CM made the remark in the assembly during a debate on budget allocation for the energy department for 2024-25. A budgetary proposal of Rs 11,422.67 crore of the department was passed by voice vote. "We can't provide free electricity to consumers. I have been saying this for years. We are already providing electricity to consumers at highly subsidised rates," the CM said, rejecting the demands of opposition members that at least 200 units of electricity be given free to 94 lakh families who earn less than Rs 6,000 a month. The demand was first raised by Sandeep Saurav, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation's MLA, during a debate on budget allocation for the energy department. State Energy Minister Bijendra Prasad Yadv while

JD(U)'s Narendra Narayan Yadav elected as Bihar assembly deputy speaker

Senior JD(U) leader Narendra Narayan Yadav was on Friday elected unopposed as the deputy speaker of the Bihar assembly. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary congratulated him after he was elected for the post. The post fell vacant on Wednesday after the resignation of his party colleague Maheshwar Hazari. Yadav, a former state minister, has been representing the Alamnagar seat of Madhepura district since the 1990s. According to JD(U) sources, Hazari, who had been holding the post since 2021, is likely to be inducted into the cabinet or considered for a party ticket in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Bihar achieves just 51.78% of mining revenue collection target till Feb 14

The Mines and Geology department of Bihar government has expressed concern over revenue collections falling short of the target and warned officials of strict disciplinary action if they fail to get their act together before the financial year comes to a close. Officials have managed to achieve just Rs 1,896.43 crore of its revenue target of Rs 3,662.39 crore for 2023-24 from the mining sector till February 14, 2024, according to documents. As per the latest review meeting chaired by the Director of Mines and Geology the department has achieved 51.78 per cent of the mining revenue collection target till February 14. In some districts such as Nalanda, Kaimur, Gaya, Aurangabad, Nawada, Jehanabad, Lakhisarai, Jamui, Munger, Kishanganj, Banka, Bhagalpur and Saran the revenue collection is less than 50 per cent, it said. "If the revenue collection in these districts does not increase immediately, strict disciplinary action will be initiated against the concerned officials of these ...

Bihar extends benefits of Ayushman Bharat scheme to ration card holders

The Bihar Cabinet on Tuesday decided to extend the benefits of free medical treatment up to Rs 5 lakh every year to all ration card holders of the state under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. Talking to PTI, after a cabinet meeting, Deputy Chief Minister Samat Chaudhary, said, It's a major decision taken by the NDA government in Bihar. It will now extend the AB PM-JAY to all ration card holders of the state. At present, around 1.2 crore people in Bihar are availing the facility of the AB PM-JAY. Now, around 58 lakh people, who are beneficiaries under the National Food Security (NFS) Act, will also be covered under the scheme, he said.