Page 49 - Bihar

Victory of poor, says Lalu on High Court upholding Bihar caste survey

RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Tuesday said the decision of the Patna High Court on the caste survey in the state is in the interest of the poor and that it will benefit all sections of society. Rejecting a bunch of petitions challenging the caste survey, the court upheld it as "perfectly valid" and "initiated with due competence". "The Patna HC's decision to dismiss all pleas challenging the Bihar government's move to conduct a caste-based survey in the state is the victory of the poor and economically disadvantaged groups. The exercise will be beneficial for all sections of the society," Prasad told reporters with his son, Deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, by his side. "The survey report will help the government in better implementation of welfare schemes for the socially and economically disadvantaged groups," he added. Prasad, the former chief minister of the state, also said that CM Nitish Kumar and the deputy CM deserve appreciation for undertaking the exercise. "We have been in fa

Another NTPC plant of 660-MW unit in Bihar begins commercial generation

State-owned power giant NTPC Ltd on Monday announced that a 660-MW unit of its plant at Barh, on the outskirts of Patna, has started commercial generation, which would result in an additional 396 MW electricity supply to Bihar. In a statement issued here, the NTPC also said this has resulted in an increase in the total commercial generation capacity of the plant from 1,980 MW to 2,640 MW. Bihar's allocation from the facility has thus risen to 1,922 MW from 1,526 MW from Monday, while the total allocation from all NTPC plants in the state has gone up to 7,287 MW from 6,891 MW. The NTPC also disclosed that the unit, which started commercial generation on Monday, had successfully completed the mandatory 72-hour full-load trial-run operation on June 30. "The fifth unit of the Barh plant, which would be the last of Stage-I, will be completed next year", the company said. According to the allocation fixed by the Union Ministry of Power, 396 MW will be supplied "to the home state of Bih

UP, Bihar, AP top states in child trafficking; Delhi records rise: Study

Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh are the top three states with the maximum number of children trafficked between 2016 and 2022, while Delhi has seen an alarming 68 per cent rise from pre to post-Covid times, according to a new study by an NGO. These statistics have been unveiled in a comprehensive report titled 'Child Trafficking in India: Insights from Situational Data Analysis and the Need for Tech-driven Intervention Strategies', jointly compiled by Games24x7 and the Kailash Satyarthi Children's Foundation (KSCF), founded by Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi. The report, released on Sunday, to mark the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons', painted a troubling picture of the child trafficking crisis in the country. The report showed that Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh are the top three states with the maximum number of children trafficked between 2016 and 2022. Notably, Delhi has witnessed a 68 per cent increase in child trafficking cases from pre to ...

JD(U) slams BJP for 'ignoring' Bihar leaders in list of office-bearers

The JD(U) on Saturday jeered at BJP leaders from Bihar over their party's list of new national office-bearers, claiming they were ignored as the ruling party does not expect to do well in the state in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. JD(U) spokesperson Rajib Ranjan said only one leader from Bihar has found a place in the new list of the BJP's vice presidents, general secretaries and secretaries while there are eight of them from Uttar Pradesh. No Bihar BJP leader has been made either a vice president or a general secretary, he noted. "Its top leaders, including the prime minister and the home minister, make claims about special affection for Bihar. But the list has exposed them. They should answer as to what kind of special affection they have for Bihar that they don't find any leader from the state for a national leadership role," Ranjan said It shows that the BJP has lost any hope of doing well in Bihar and has realised it will be wiped out from the state in the 2024 polls, he claimed.

ADB, India sign $295 mn loan pact to upgrade state highways in Bihar

Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the central government on Thursday signed an agreement for a USD 295 million loan to upgrade around 265-kilometre state highways with climate and disaster-resilient design and road safety elements in Bihar. The project supports the Bihar government programme to upgrade all state highways to standard two-lane widths and improve road safety, ADB said in a statement. The improved roads will enhance connectivity in some of Bihar's poorest rural districts and promote access to health and education facilities and markets to improve people's lives, it added. The project will also encourage women's participation by providing employment to female workers in construction works, it said, adding training in livelihood as well as awareness on road safety, health, hygiene, abuse and harassment will be offered to women from communities in the project areas. Since 2008, ADB has provided five loans totalling USD 1.63 billion to Bihar for the upgradation of about ...

NDRF rescues 5-year-old boy from borewell in Bihar's Nalanda district

A five-year-old boy fell into a borewell in Bihar's Nalanda district on Sunday, officials said. The incident happened in Kul village in Silao block, they said. The boy, identified as Shivam Kumar, was playing with his friends when he accidentally slipped into the borewell which was left uncovered, they added. The boy got stuck in the borewell at a depth of 50 feet, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said. A team of the NDRF rushed to the site from Patna and pulled out the boy alive at 5.20 pm, it said. He was admitted to a hospital for treatment, officials said.

Bihar BJP women cell books Nitish, Tejashwi over lathicharge on workers

A fresh complaint against Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, his deputy Tejashwi Yadav and state government officials was lodged in a local court here on Saturday in connection with the police lathicharge on BJP workers, especially women, during a protest march in the state capital on July 13. The complaint has been filed by Lajwanti Jha, head of the women cell of state BJP. Earlier, a similar complaint was lodged by BJP worker Krishna Singh Kallu before a court in Patna. Talking to reporters, Jha said, "Police lathicharge on BJP workers, especially women, on June 13 was barbaric and it was done on the directions of the CM, deputy CM and other senior officials of the district administration and police." "One of our workers, Vijay Kumar Singh, died due to the lathicharge. Action must be taken against those who are responsible. I have filed a complaint in this regard before the competent court seeking action against them," Jha, who was accompanied by her lawyer Ratnesh Kumar, said. O

Long list of heinous crimes against women in Rajasthan, WB, Bihar: BJP

There is a long list of heinous crimes against women in opposition-ruled states such as Rajasthan, West Bengal and Bihar, but it is playing politics over the Manipur incident, the BJP alleged on Saturday. Tension mounted in the hills of strife-torn Manipur after a May 4 video surfaced on Wednesday showing two women from one of the warring communities being paraded naked by a group of men from the other side. Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters here, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur referred to some cases of crime against women registered in Rajasthan, Bihar and West Bengal to hit out at opposition parties. "Over one lakh cases of crime against women have been registered in Rajasthan in the last four years. A total of 33,000 cases pertain to sexual assault on women in Rajasthan," Thakur alleged. On the sacking of a Rajasthan minister Rajendra Gudha, he said that on the instructions of Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Chief ...

BCECE DCECE Result 2023 Out, Check Bihar Polytechnic Entrance Results

The BCECEB has posted the Diploma Certificate Entrance Competitive Examination (DCECE) 2023 result on its official website

Nitish not angry, asserts JD(U) prez who accompanied him to Bengaluru

JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh 'Lalan', who accompanied Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on the trip to Bengaluru, on Wednesday strongly denied reports of the latter's displeasure with the way things went at the opposition meet. Talking to reporters here, Lalan described as "dushprachar" (canard) of the BJP-led NDA reports of Kumar being unhappy with the acronym 'INDIA' and going into a sulk over not being made convener of the new coalition. "This is all dushprachar and rumour mongering on the part of the NDA led by the country's honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The name INDIA bore the stamp of approval from all leaders present at the opposition meet", said Lalan. About the speculations around Nitish Kumar being made the convener, the JD(U) chief said "This was not on the agenda of yesterday's meeting. It may be thought about when the next meeting takes place in Mumbai". He alleged that BJP leaders like former Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi who have claimed that Kumar ...

BJP team meets injured workers in Patna, seeks inquiry into police action

The BJP on Saturday asserted that the state-sponsored and brutal police action on its procession in the Bihar capital earlier this week warranted a judicial inquiry and intervention of the National Human Rights Commission. A four-member fact-finding team constituted by BJP national president J P Nadda stated this here, as it met several party activists, who sustained injuries in the police action on June 13 and are undergoing treatment at hospitals. The team members also include former Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das and Members of Parliament Manoj Tiwari, Sunita Duggal and Vishnu Dayal Ram. Duggal alleged that women BJP workers were hit with lathis on their chests and heads by male police personnel on Thursday when the party was staging a Vidhan Sabha march in protest against the Nitish Kumar government's teacher recruitment policy. Tiwari, who is a Lok Sabha MP from Delhi, but has his roots in Bihar, claimed 771 BJP workers were injured in the incident and some of them were

BJP forms panel to probe party leader death in police lathi charge in Patna

The four-member inquiry committee includes former Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das, and three MPs - Manoj Tiwari, Vishnu Dayal Ram and Sunita Duggal

BJP leader dies during protest in Patna, party alleges police brutality

BJP leaders were arrested as demonstrations, against the Bihar government's teacher recruitment policy, turned violent

Bihar cancels leaves of teachers amid BJP protest over recruitment policy

The Bihar government cancelled the leaves of all teachers for a week, according to an official document. The Education Department also asked the district magistrates to inspect all state-run schools on Thursday to check the attendance of teachers. "The attendance/presence of teachers in all government schools must be 100 per cent on July 13... Strict departmental action, including suspension, should be taken against those teachers who are found absent during inspection on July 13," said the letter by KK Pathak, the additional chief secretary (ACS-Education), on Wednesday. The department also asked district education officers to cancel the leaves of all teaching staff for a week. "Only in emergency situations, permission (of leave) can be taken directly from the ACS only," said the letter, which was also issued on Wednesday. The reasons behind the directives were not specified by the department in the letters. However, the opposition BJP claimed that the directions were given to .

BJP disrupts assembly proceedings in Bihar demanding Tejashwi's resignation

The Bihar Assembly was on Tuesday adjourned till 2 pm amid uproar by members of the opposition BJP who entered the well demanding Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav's resignation following a CBI chargesheet. The proceedings began at 11 am, when BJP members rose in their seats and trooped into the well, pressing the demand for the resignation of the RJD leader who is named in a land-for-jobs scam which is being investigated by the CBI. Speaker Awadh Bihari Chaudhary tried to conduct the proceedings amid the bedlam but gave up in less than 10 minutes as his pleas for orderly behaviour had little effect. "Your behaviour is a blot on the history of this august House. You are impeding the Question Hour, even though many issues you wished to raise are listed for the day," the Speaker said, before announcing that the House would reassemble at 2 pm, after lunch hour. The case pertains to people allegedly given employment in the railways, during the tenure of Lalu Prasad as the Railway ..

Five-day long monsoon session of the Bihar legislature to begin Monday

The five-day Monsoon Session of the Bihar legislature will begin on Monday. The monsoon session of the assembly and state legislative council, which will continue till July 14, is likely to be stormy as the opposition led by BJP has decided to take on the state government on various issues including the government's alleged failure to provide 10 lakh government jobs to youths, recent amendments in the school teachers' recruitment rules and withdrawal of the domicile policy for fresh recruitment of school teachers. Besides, opposition members are also expected to raise the issue of the recent charge sheet filed by the CBI against state Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, in the land-for-job scam in the railways. The CBI had on July 3 filed a fresh charge sheet against Tejashwi, his father and former Railway minister Lalu Prasad, mother and former state CM Rabri Devi, and others in connection with the case. The BJP will also take out a march from Gandhi Maidan to the state assembly cornering th

Tejashwi slams BJP, rejects speculations of unrest in Mahagathbandhan

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday alleged that the CBI's chargesheet against him was a part of the BJP's tactics" to tarnish the reputation of its opponents. Talking to reporters upon return from a long vacation, Yadav also rubbished speculations of a rift within the state's ruling Mahagathbandhan, which he blamed on media outlets acting as spokespersons of the BJP. Yadav spoke at the airport here, with his father and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad by his side who chose to stay silent, letting the son and heir apparent do the talking. The BJP has been jittery since the day Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and we joined hands. The case against me has no substance. All of us understand the game well. The BJP will get a befitting response in the Lok Sabha elections next year, Yadav said. He was abroad when the Central Bureau of Investigation last week came out with a fresh chargesheet in the land-for-jobs scam, with his name among the accused, alongside his father and mother Ra

Bihar police seek ban on over 100 gambling, gaming and illegal loan apps

Bihar police has approached the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) seeking a ban on more than 100 gambling/gaming and loan lending apps that are allegedly engaged in money laundering and pose a threat to the financial security of the country. The Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar police recently approached MeitY urging it to ban more than 100 such apps, Nayyar Hasnain Khan, Additional Director General (ADG) of EOU (Bihar police) told PTI on Saturday. "The decision was taken after confirming that these apps attract Section 69 of the Information Technology (IT) Act as they contain materials which is prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India. Several complaints had been received of extortion and harassment from people who had borrowed very small amounts through such loan lending apps," Khan said. Section 69A of IT Act empowers the government to restrict access to any online content to protect the interest of sovereignty and integrity of the natio

Bihar overtakes Tamil Nadu to become biggest MFI market in India

Bihar has overtaken Tamil Nadu to emerge as the state with the highest microlending borrowings as of March 2023, a report said on Wednesday. Bihar achieved the growth courtesy of a 13.5 per cent growth in the gross lending portfolio in the March quarter as compared with the preceding quarter, the report by a credit information company said. The report by Crif High Mark has put the overall Microfinance (MFI) borrowings in Bihar at Rs 48,900 crore as of March, which represents 14.5 per cent of the overall portfolio, while the same in Tamil Nadu stood at Rs 46,300 crore, representing 13.7 per cent of the overall outstanding. The overall MFI portfolio outstanding grew by 17.9 per cent to Rs 3.37 lakh crore at the end of March, the report said, adding that there was an improvement in the asset quality as well. The proportion of MFI loans overdue for over 90 days came down to 1.1 per cent as of March 2023, as against 2 per cent in December 2022, the report said. The top ten states now .

Centre on political 'witch hunt' against Tejashwi, says JD(U) president

A day after the CBI filed a chargesheet against Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav and others in connection with the land-for-jobs scam, JD(U) national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh on Tuesday accused the BJP-led central government of running a "witch-hunt" against the RJD leader. The second chargesheet of the CBI in this case was filed without a shred of evidence against Yadav. The CBI had earlier said there was no proof against him. But when the RJD and JD(U) along with other parties formed the grand alliance government in Bihar in August 2022, the Centre started using its 'parrot' (CBI) and other federal probe agencies against the deputy CM, Singh said in a video message. The CBI on Monday filed a chargesheet against Yadav, his father and former railways minister Lalu Prasad and mother and former chief minister Rabri Devi in connection with the land-for-jobs scam in a competent court in New Delhi. The chargesheet, which also named 14 others, is the second in the case. CBI