Page 18 - Bihar

People of Bihar to decide from where I should contest state polls: Paswan

Paswan is currently a Union minister and MP from his family pocket borough of Hajipur

We will break barrier of 50 pc cap on quotas: Rahul Gandhi in Bihar

Rejecting outright the 50 per cent cap on caste-based reservations, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday vowed that "the barrier will be broken" in whichever part of the country his party came to power. The Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha made the promise in Bihar, the state which was a hotbed of the Mandal agitation in the 1990s, and where polls to the assembly are likely in a few months. "I wonder where did this idea of a 50 per cent cap come from? The population of the deprived sections is close to 90 per cent," said the former Congress president at a 'Samvidhan Suraksha Sammelan' (symposium for protecting the Constitution) in Rajgir. Voicing disapproval of the cap that has been placed by the Supreme Court, Gandhi said a caste census would be the first step in doing away with the barrier. "When we conducted a caste survey in Telangana, which showed among other things that Dalits, tribals and other backward classes hardly got any government contracts, the chief minister o

Darkness to Disruption: This CEO is Lighting Up Rural India and Africa

In this episode of Manager’s Mantra, Manoj Sinha, CEO of Husk Power Systems and TIME100 Climate Leader, shares how renewable energy and AI are lighting up rural India.

Bihar reduces VAT on aviation turbine fuel to 4% to boost air connectivity

The Bihar Cabinet on Tuesday approved the proposal for reduction of value-added tax (VAT) on aviation turbine fuel (ATF) from 29 per cent to 4 per cent. The state Cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, approved the proposal of the Commercial Tax department to reduce VAT on ATF to attract more commercial flights. Bihar DyCM Samrat Choudhary in a statement issued after the cabinet meeting said, "The Cabinet approved the reduction of VAT on ATF from 29 per cent to 4 per cent under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS). With this decision of the government, the air ticket prices will further reduce and it will also attract more commercial fights in the state.it will further enhance state's revenue and will also generate employment.". Earlier, 4 per cent VAT on ATF was applicable at Gaya airport only, Choudhary who also holds the Finance portfolio said, adding now the reduced rate will be applicable at all airports in the state. "This was also done with the objective

Bihar has tremendous potential for agricultural development, says Shivraj

Maintaining that Bihar has tremendous potential for agricultural development, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday said for a "developed India, agriculture must develop and farmers must also prosper". Chouhan said this on Monday when he visited Motihari, the district headquarters town of East Champaran district and interacted with farmers as part of his nationwide tour under the VKSA campaign. "I have come to Bihar to support and serve the farmers here and help increase agricultural productivity. For me, serving farmers is like worshipping God... 'Ek Rashtra, Ek Krishi, Ek Team' (one nation, one agriculture, one team) is the motto of this campaign," he said. "The Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan (VKSA) of the Central government is a landmark initiative aimed at transforming Indian agriculture. For a developed India, agriculture must develop and farmers must also prosper.....Bihar has tremendous potential for agricultural development.....and

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar hails PM Modi's leadership for state's development

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the steps being taken by the Union Government towards Bihar's development.

PM Modi to inaugurate development projects worth Rs 48,520 crore in Bihar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate and lay foundation stone of multiple development projects worth over Rs 48,520 crore in Bihar's Karakat on Friday. The PM, who arrived in Patna on a two-day visit to the state on Thursday, will also address a public rally in Karakat. According to an official communication, "The PM will inaugurate, lay foundation stone and dedicate to the nation multiple development projects worth over Rs 48,520 crore in Karakat. Boosting power infrastructure in the region, he will lay the foundation stone for the Nabinagar Super Thermal Power Project, stage-II (3x800 MW) in Aurangabad district worth over Rs 29,930 crore, which will aim at ensuring energy security for Bihar and eastern India". It will boost industrial growth, create job opportunities, and provide affordable electricity in the region, it added. Further, in boost to the road infrastructure and connectivity in the region, the PM will lay the foundation stone for various road projects includi

PM virtually inaugurates projects in Sikkim, unveils Atal statue

Modi unveiled the statue of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee at Atal Amrit Udyan in Sangkhola, Gangtok District, honouring the legacy of the former Prime Minister

PM to embark on 2-day visit to Bihar on Thursday; roadshow, rally on cards

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Bihar on Thursday for a two-day visit to the state, where assembly polls are due later this year. During the trip, the PM will launch several projects, hold a roadshow and address a rally in Karakat in the Shahabad region of the state. According to an official communication, the PM will arrive at the Patna airport in the evening and will inaugurate the newly constructed passenger terminal there. The terminal has been built at a cost of around Rs 1,200 crore and can handle one crore passengers per year. "He will also lay the foundation stone for the new civil enclave of Bihta airport, which will be built at Rs 1,410 crore. The facility will serve the town, which is rapidly emerging as an educational hub as it is home to IIT Patna and the proposed NIT Patna campus," the communication said. From the airport, Modi will head for the state BJP office, situated about three kilometres away, with stopovers at several places where the PM will be .

PM Modi to launch development projects worth over ₹70K cr across 4 states

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh on May 29 and 30, during which he will inaugurate, dedicate and lay the foundation stone of multiple projects

Covid-19 cases cross 1,000 mark: 430 active cases in Kerala, 104 in Delhi

Covid-19 tally rises across India with over 1,000 active cases. Kerala tops list with 430 active cases; Delhi sees 99 new cases in a week, triggering fresh concerns

Lalu Yadav expels son Tej Pratap from party over 'long-time partner' post

The move came a day after a post on Tej Pratap Yadav's Facebook account said he was 'in a relationship' with a woman for 12 years. Yadav later claimed his account was hacked

Social media war between RJD, NDA ahead of Bihar's electoral battle

The NDA and the RJD, the two main rivals in politics of Bihar, where assembly polls are due in a few months, on Saturday made the use of social media and animation technology to pin each other down. On its X handle, the RJD, which hopes that its young leader Tejashwi Yadav will rise to power, trained its guns at Chief Minister and JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar. In an animated video, with a background commentary rendered like a "rap" number, Kumar has been called "paltu" (a turncoat) whose "baate hain faltu" (talks nonsense). Notably, the longest-serving CM of Bihar has also had two short-lived alliances with the RJD, headed by his arch rival Lalu Prasad, and Yadav, the latter's younger son and heir apparent, occupied the post of deputy chief minister on both occasions. Now in the opposition, the RJD minced no words in voicing its frustration, as it wondered whether the septuagenarian had allegedly applied "fevicol" to his seat of power, to retain it despite "political ...

Bihar cabinet approves renaming of Gaya town to 'Gaya Ji' citing sentiment

Additional chief secretary S Siddharth said the renaming of Gaya to 'Gaya Ji' was based on local sentiments and the town's historical and religious importance, as decided in a state cabinet meeting

Nitish Kumar-led Bihar govt hikes DA for its employees, pensioners to 55%

The Bihar government announced a 2 percentage points increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) for its employees and pensioners on Friday. The decision was taken at a meeting of the state cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. With this hike, employees and pensioners in the pay scale of the 7th Pay Commission will get DA and Dearness Relief (DR) of 55 per cent, Additional Chief Secretary (Cabinet Secretariat) S Siddharth said. "A hike of 6 percentage points has been approved for those in the pay scale of the 6th Pay Commission. This will raise their DA and DR to 252 per cent. For those in the pay scale of the 5th Pay Commission, the DA and DR have been raised by 11 percentage points to 466 per cent," he said. The hike will benefit more than 5 lakh employees and over 6 lakh pensioners, officials said. It will be effective from January 1, 2025, they said.

Bihar: LoP Rahul Gandhi to launch 'Shiksha Nyay Samvad' in Darbhanga today

Earlier on Wednesday, Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar said that the Congress will launch a state-wide 'Nyay Samvad' across Bihar starting on May 15

Over 650K calls received on SC, ST atrocities helpline since 2021; UP leads

Over 6.5 lakh calls have been received by the National Helpline Against Atrocities (NHAA) regarding the atrocities against SCs and STs since the launch of the helpline in December 2021, with nearly half of the total calls originating from Uttar Pradesh, official data showed. Of the calls, 7,135 grievances have been officially registered, and 4,314 have been resolved. The helpline, aimed at empowering members of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), is operational round the clock in Hindi, English and regional languages to ensure proper implementation of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. These complaints range from incidents of assault, social boycotts, caste-based abuse, land grabbing and denial of access to public spaces to allegations of police inaction in atrocity cases. "Many of the calls received on the helpline are related to inquiries, requests for legal guidance or reports lacking sufficient details to be registered

Teacher exam aspirants protest near Bihar CM's home, police disperse crowd

Chaos erupted near the official residence of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna on Tuesday when police baton-charged aspirants who had staged a sit-in demanding the release of supplementary results of a teacher recruitment exam. The demonstrators, demanding the release of the Teacher Recruitment Exam (TRE-3) supplementary result, staged the demonstration outside the gates of the CM's residence on 1 Anne Marg. The entire area is a high-security zone and no such protest is allowed. A large number of protesters, carrying placards, raised slogans against the state government and the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC), which conducted the exam. Anu Kumari, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Sachiwalay-1, requested the protesters to immediately vacate the area as such activities are restricted there. When the protesters refused to budge, police resorted to baton-charge to disperse the aspirants. The SDPO, however, refused to speak to reporters. Protesters claimed that sev

Caste Census: Tejashwi Yadav urges PM Modi to review reservation policies

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him for a "comprehensive review of the social protection and reservation policies" once the exercise to include caste enumeration in the upcoming census is completed. Yadav, the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar assembly, shared the letter on X on Saturday. It was written on Friday. "Conducting the caste census is merely the first step of the long journey towards social justice. The census data must lead to a comprehensive review of social protection and reservation policies. The arbitrary cap on reservations will also have to be reconsidered," the letter said. The upcoming delimitation exercise should reflect the social realities uncovered by the census, ensuring proportional political representation for marginalised groups, it read. "The redrawing of constituencies should be sensitive to and reflective of the census data," Yadav wrote to the PM. Special provisions must be there for adequate politica

Snake found in mid-day meal: Over 100 kids ill in Bihar, NHRC orders probe

Over 100 students fell ill after eating a mid-day meal allegedly contaminated by a dead snake in Mokama, Bihar, prompting an NHRC probe and demand for a report