Page 45 - Bihar

Day after Nitish's assurance, rumours swirl around JD(U) prez's resignation

Rumours were afloat in Bihar on Tuesday that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's key aide Rajiv Ranjan Singh Lalan' has told the former he wanted to step down as JD(U) national president. At the state headquarters of the party here, leaders had a tough time fending off queries of journalists, who also wanted to know whether speculations of a rift between Kumar and Lalan, on account of growing proximity of the latter towards RJD president Lalu Prasad, had a grain of truth. "You speak of fissures in the JD(U). I say there is not even a scratch, asserted state minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, who had turned up at the party office on his weekly round. Chaudhary also blamed the rumours surrounding Lalan in the media, saying, "We, in the party, have heard nothing of that sort, but you people give things whatever spin you wish and then drop it when it suits your news cycle". He evaded a direct reply when asked whether Lalan was likely to make a formal offer of his resignation at the JD(U)'s meet

Bihar to give govt employee status to 350,000 contractual teachers

The Bihar Cabinet on Tuesday decided to give government employee status to around 3.5 lakh contractual (Niyojit) teachers, teaching in different government-run schools in the state, an official said. The decision to this effect was taken in the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. "Immediately after notification by the state government in this regard, these contractual teachers, teaching in different state-run schools for the last several years, will be considered as 'exclusive teachers', with government employee status. A proposal in this regard was mooted by the state Education department before the cabinet on Tuesday, which was later approved", S Siddharth, Additional Chief Secretary (Cabinet Secretariat), told reporters after the cabinet meeting. While elaborating on the process of the newly approved policy, Siddharth said, "These exclusive teachers will have to clear competency examinations for continuing the status of a government employee. Clearing competen

Tejashwi condemns DMK MP Maran's remarks on people of Hindi heartland

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday condemned DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran's alleged remark that people from the Hindi heartland were cleaning toilets and doing other menial jobs in Tamil Nadu. Yadav said like his RJD, the DMK headed by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin was a party that believed in social justice and it was unbecoming of a leader of such a party to have made such a remark. "Had the DMK MP highlighted caste iniquities, had he pointed out that only people from some social groups took up such hazardous jobs, it would have made sense", said the RJD leader. "But to speak disparagingly of the entire populace of Bihar and UP is reprehensible. We condemn it. We believe that people should be respectful towards those coming from other parts of the country", asserted Yadav. "We look upon DMK as a party which shares our ideal of social justice. Its leaders should avoid saying things that run counter to the ideal", said Yadav, who is known to share personal equatio

21% students dropped out in Class X in 2021-22, highest in Odisha: Pradhan

The drop out rate in Class 10 stands at 20.6 per cent as of 2021-22 with Odisha being the worst performing state in this regard followed by Bihar, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan informed the Lok Sabha on Monday. The drop out rate in Class 10 was 49.9 per cent in Odisha and 42.1 per cent in Bihar, said Pradhan in his written response. The minister was responding to a question by DMK MP Kalanidhi Veeraswamy on whether the government is cognizant of the analysis based on the recent exercise carried out by the Ministry of Education that about 3.5 million students stop their education in Class 10. Pradhan informed that 1,89,90,809 students appeared for Class 10 examination in 2022, of which 29,56,138 students failed to progress to the next class. "The reasons for failure of students in examination depends on various factors viz, not attending the schools, difficulty in following the instruction in schools, lack of interest in the studies, level of difficulty of question pap

Adani Group to make additional investment of Rs 8,700 crore in Bihar

The Adani Group on Thursday said it would make an additional investment of Rs 8,700 crore in Bihar in various sectors, including cement manufacturing, logistics and the agro-industry. The group is already present in Bihar, where it has invested Rs 850 crore, said Pranav Adani, Director, Adani Enterprises. He was speaking at the Bihar Business Connect-2023, a two-day global investors summit that concluded on Thursday. "Our group has decided to invest Rs 8,700 crore in additional sectors in Bihar. This will create direct or indirect employment for approximately 10,000 people in the state, Adani said. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar released the Bihar Logistics Policy 2023 and a coffee table book (of the state industries department) at the summit on Thursday. Kumar, however, did not address the gathering at the event. Bihar is now an attractive investment destination in the country. We are currently present in logistics, gas distribution, and agro-logistics, with an investment of

Bihar business summit: MoUs signed for Rs 50,530 crore investment

Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) were signed between the Bihar government and eight companies on Wednesday for proposed investments of Rs 554.4 crore in textile and leather sectors in the eastern state. Speaking at the inaugural session of the two-day global investors' summit 'Bihar Business Connect-2023' here, Bihar industries minister Samir Kumar Mahaseth iterated the demand for the creation of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in the state by the Centre, and assured the delegates that the Nitish Kumar government would provide all assistance to them for establishing industries. "With new policies, Bihar has changed. Join the new Bihar and enrich it. If industries grow in the state, the country will progress too. I once again request the Centre to create at least four SEZs in the state that will pave the way for fresh investment opportunities," he said. "There is no doubt that investors are coming to Bihar. An increase in investments would take Bihar to the list of top 10 states in .

Granted ASI nod, Bihar gears up for excavation of 2,600-year-old site

The Bihar government is preparing the process for exploration of Buddhist sites visited by Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang in present-day Vaishali district, and excavation of the remains of 2,600-year-old structures in Banka, officials said on Monday. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) recently granted permission to the Bihar Heritage Development Society (BHDS), a wing of the state's Art, Culture and Youth department, to work in these two places. The excavations will be made in Bhadaria village with links to Hindu mythology and Buddhism, in Banka district near the Chandan river. "It has been established that Bhadaria is a historical place. As per initial studies, the remains found there are 2,600 years old," said Harjot Kaur Bamhrah, Additional Chief Secretary of the state's Art, Culture and Youth department. The ground-penetrating radar (GPR) survey, a geophysical method that uses radar pulses to image the subsurface, has already been conducted in Banka and surrounding areas t

EZC meet: Bihar Caste survey has issues that need to be resolved, says Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said there are some issues regarding the caste survey conducted by the Bihar government, which he hoped that the state will resolve. Addressing the Eastern Zonal Council meeting here, Shah said the central government never had any intention of creating hurdles in the caste-based survey. Following a caste survey in Bihar, the Nitish Kumar administration hiked reservations for deprived castes from 50 to 65 per cent in state government jobs and educational institutions and urged the Centre to incorporate the increased quota in the 9th schedule of the Constitution, so that it gets immunity from legal scrutiny. According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Shah said at the meeting that when his party was in power in the state, it had supported the caste-based survey. "There are some issues regarding the caste survey, which he (Shah) hoped that the state government would resolve," the statement said, without elaborating. Address

Eastern Zonal Council meet: Nitish demands for special status to Bihar

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday raised before Union Home Minister Amit Shah his long-standing demand for grant of special category status to the state. At the 26th meeting of the Eastern Zonal Council here, chaired by Shah, Kumar also hoped that the Centre will consider the request for placing in the ninth schedule of the Constitution the state's recent legislations by which quotas for deprived castes were raised from 50 per cent to 65 per cent. The Ninth Schedule of the Constitution includes a list of Central and state laws that cannot be challenged in courts. In 1992, the Supreme Court capped reservations for the backward classes at 50 per cent. "The CM urged the Centre to accord special status to Bihar in the meeting. Bihar has been raising the issue of Special status to the state since 2010. The fresh demand was necessitated by findings of the caste survey carried out by the grand alliance government in the state," a CMO statement said. "The state government has ...

PMAY-G benefits given to deceased persons, ineligible ones in Bihar: Audit

Providing of benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) to deceased persons, payment of instalments to those ineligible to the scheme and full assistance paid against non-existing houses have been found during an audit exercise in 10 districts of Bihar, an official said on Saturday. Unrealistic geo-tagging of house locations and payment of instalments in wrong accounts are also among the discrepancies observed by teams of the accountant general (AG-Bihar) during the audit of the implementation of the rural housing scheme in the state. Based on the performance audit' report, state Rural Development Department Secretary N Saravana Kumar has recently asked all deputy development commissioners (DDCs) and officers concerned to ensure strict adherence to the guidelines of the Centre for implementing the programme. Officers concerned must ensure transparency and strict adherence to the guidelines, under the Framework for implementation of the PMAY-G', issued by the ...

Amit Shah to chair 26th meeting of Eastern Zonal Council in Bihar on Sunday

The meeting is being organized by the Inter-State Council Secretariat under the MHA in collaboration with the government of Bihar

Bihar records most road accident deaths near religious places: NCRB

Bihar recorded the maximum number of road accidents near religious places in the country last year in which 2,995 people were killed, according to the latest report of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The state also registered a 13.1 per cent rise in overall road accidents in 2022 over the previous year, according to 'Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2022' released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). "A total of 2258 people (Male-1791 and Female-467) died in road accidents near religious places in rural areas across the state in 2022. This is highest in the country, followed by Uttar Pradesh (686), Jharkhand (525), Tamil Nadu (506), Madhya Pradesh (340) and Maharashtra (321)," it said. As far as road accidents near religious places in urban areas, the report said, "A total 737 (male 536 and female 201) people died in different districts across the state in 2022. This is again highest in the country followed by Uttar Pradesh (487), Madhya Pradesh (308), Maharasht

Bihar Board Exam Dates 2024: BSEB announces class 10, 12 exam dates

The Bihar board announced the class 10th and 12th exam date sheet on Monday. The exam will take place in two shifts. Check all the latest exam updates here

Wheat sowing still tad down; mustard acreage more than last year

While the acreage drop in Bihar could be due to delayed harvest of paddy, the fall in area in Rajasthan as compared to last year might be due to reporting delays because of polls

Rescued worker from Bihar says CM did not send officials at tunnel site

A Bihar resident who was among the 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel complained on Wednesday that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar did not send his officials to the tunnel site to enquire about the workers from the state nor did he contact his relatives back home during their 16-day ordeal. The worker complained of this when Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met him at the community health centre in Chinyalisaur and asked how he was doing. "All other state governments sent their officials to the tunnel to enquire about the well-being of the trapped workers from their respective states. But our chief minister Nitish Kumar did not send anyone nor did he contact our relatives back home to say a word of sympathy. I do not know what mistake we committed," the worker told Dhami. He also expressed his gratitude to the Uttarakhand chief minister for the efforts made by various agencies under his leadership to secure their safe exit from the tunnel. Dhami had set up a ca

India saw extreme weather events almost every day in 1st 9 months in 2023

India experienced extreme weather events almost every day in the first nine months of this year which led to nearly 3,000 deaths, according to a report released on Wednesday. Published by independent think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the report said the climate-vulnerable country had extreme weather on 86 per cent of days from January to September. The CSE said 2,923 people died, almost two million hectares of crops were ruined, 80,000 homes were destroyed and more than 92,000 animals were killed. But these numbers might be even higher because not all the data is collected, it said. "'India 2023: An assessment of extreme weather events' attempts to build an evidence base on the frequency and expanding geography of extreme weather events in the country. As this assessment clearly shows, what the country has witnessed so far in 2023 is the new 'abnormal' in a warming world," said the CSE director general Sunita Narain. Research indicates that extreme weather events

PIL challenges hike in Bihar quotas, JD(U) prez suspects 'BJP hand'

JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh "Lalan" on Monday said that he saw "a BJP hand" behind a petition filed in the Patna High Court against the recent hike in quotas for socially deprived castes. Lalan made the statement reacting to reports that a Public Interest Litigation was filed last week which will come up for hearing in due course. "It is all the BJP's doing. The party is anti-reservations. It had got its supporters to challenge quotas for extremely backward classes in local body polls. But the design was foiled and municipal elections were held with seats reserved for EBCs," he told reporters here. "The BJP was again at work when attempts were made to derail the caste survey ordered by the Nitish Kumar government. When petitions filed by BJP supporters could not stand on merit, the Centre chipped in and the Solicitor General of India opposed the survey in the Supreme Court," he added. The JD(U) chief expressed confidence that the recently passed legislations raising the quan

Army recruitment rallies in different parts of Bihar and Jharkhand

Army recruitment rallies are being conducted in the Danapur Army recruitment zone to recruit Junior commissioned officers in different categories from November 23

Minister Giriraj Singh writes to Bihar CM, advocates ban on halal products

Union minister Giriraj Singh has written to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, saying halal business is a "treason" in a secular democracy like India and advocating a ban on production, storage, distribution and sale of food products with halal certification in Bihar like in Uttar Pradesh. In the letter to the Bihar CM, the BJP MP and Rural Development minister said, "Things which have no connection with Islam are being Islamised. Some institutions have become self-proclaimed in giving halal certificate and are giving halal certificate to companies manufacturing goods by paying huge sums of money". There is a need to impose a ban against the kind of 'jihad' going on in the name of halal products even in a big state like Bihar, he said. It has been learnt that halal trade of many food items and other essential items like edible oil, snacks, dry fruits, sweets, cosmetics, medicines and medical equipment is going on in Bihar, whereas for certification related to such items is only done by ..

Bihar govt to launch programme for 2.5 mn academically weak school children

The Bihar government will launch a programme in December for nearly 25 lakh children lagging woefully behind their peers in schools with some of them incapable of reading simple Hindi words despite having reached upper primary classes, officials said on Thursday. As part of the programme, 'Mission Daksh', the state Education Department has directed teachers to intensively mentor such students, in batches of not more than five, with the "warning" that any laxity will cause them to face action. Additional Chief Secretary of Education KK Pathak wrote to all the district magistrates (DMs) on November 21, requesting them to supervise the progress of the programme in their areas on a daily basis from December 1. District-wise monitoring committees, headed by DMs, would be formed for the effective execution of 'Mission Daksh', it said. During the regular inspection and monitoring by the DMs that started in July, it was found that there is a considerable number of academically weak student