Page 13 - Nitish Kumar

Bihar govt has fixed target of providing 1.2 mn govt jobs: CM Nitish Kumar

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday said the NDA government in the state has now fixed a new target of providing 12 lakh government jobs to youths by next year. Soon after hoisting the tricolour at the Gandhi Maidan here, Kumar said, "Bihar is moving ahead with high growth rate and development. It will go ahead with inclusive development in the coming years. Earlier, we had promised to provide 10 lakh government jobs to our youthsbut now our government has fixed a new target of providing 12 lakh government jobs to youths before the 2025 assembly polls. The state government is working in this direction, the chief minister said. "Under its 'Saat Nischay Part-2' scheme, the state government fixed a target of providing 10 lakh jobs and creating employment opportunities for 10 lakh people. The scheme was launched in 2020around 5.16 lakh people have already been given government jobs under this scheme and a process has been completed for providing 2 lakh more government jobs," .

Surprise discovery: Bihar tourism dept finds 113 acres of 'lost land'

The land piece was 'discovered' during a review of old communications with the land and revenue department, as part of the tourism department's initiative to identify and develop its land holdings

Nitish aide slams Tejashwi's yatra plan aimed at highlighting NDA's failure

A key aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar slammed Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav, who has decided to embark on a state-wide tour to highlight alleged failures of the NDA government. Senior JD (U) leader and state minister Ashok Choudhary on Saturday came out with a statement attacking Yadav, a day after the RJD leader announced his plans to undertake the yatra from August 15. "In his press conference, Yadav had questioned the Nitish Kumar government's commitment to restore hiked reservations for deprived castes and alleged that despite being a part of the ruling alliance at the Centre, our party failed to secure special status for Bihar. He had also claimed that crime graph was soaring in the state," said Choudhary, who went on to debunk the charges. The rural works minister, who, incidentally, is a Dalit, trained his guns at the RJD leader over his party's "failure" to give reservations to SCs and STs in panchayats "for the 15-year period during which it ruled ...

Adani to invest Rs 5,500 cr in cement unit, Bihar CM lays foundation stone

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday laid the foundation stone for a Rs 1,600-crore cement grinding unit of Ambuja Concrete North Private Ltd, a subsidiary of Adani Group's Ambuja Cements, in Nawada district. Adani Group has decided to invest an additional Rs 5,500 crore across various sectors in the state, a statement, issued by the CMO, said. A total of 40,000 employment opportunities will be generated by these investments, it said. "The project of 6 MTPA cement grinding unit, worth Rs 1,600 crore, will be implemented in three phases. The first one of 2.4 MTPA at an investment of Rs 1,100 crore is targeted to be commissioned by December 2025. The project is expected to create 250 direct and 1,000 indirect jobs in the area," the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said. The project is considered the largest investment in the state by a cement industry player. It will meet the growing infrastructure needs of Bihar, the CMO said. "Adani Group has decided to invest an additional

Bihar quota law: Patna HC verdict based on 50% cap on reservation decoded

In June, the Patna HC had struck down the law passed by the Nitish Kumar government, which legalised hiking the reservations for backward classes, Dalits and tribals up to 65%

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar chairs JD(U) meeting, discusses Jharkhand polls

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U) on Saturday said that it wanted to contest the assembly elections in neighbouring Jharkhand in alliance with the BJP. Kumar chaired a meeting of his party at his official residence and it was attended by JD(U) working president Sanjay Kumar Jha, who is in charge of Jharkhand, Bihar minister Ashok Choudhary and Rajya Sabha MP Khiru Mahto, who heads the JD(U)'s unit in the adjoining state, among others. After the meeting, Mahto told reporters, "We are looking forward to contesting the Jharkhand assembly polls in alliance with the BJP." "Among the issues discussed with the party's supreme leader was the inclusion of Kurmis in the list of Scheduled Tribes. Kurmi leaders in Jharkhand have been raising the demand for some time and today it was seconded by delegates from West Bengal. We will now move forward by raising the issue in Parliament and before President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah," he ..

Poor planning, mgmt delayed projects in Patna Smart Cities Mission: CAG

The deficient financial management, poor planning and inclusion of unfeasible projects resulted in delayed or incomplete execution of projects under the Smart Cities Mission in Patna, the CAG said in a report. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) said that "unfeasible projects" were included in the list of 44 initially approved projects, indicating "poor planning on the part of Patna Smart City Limited (PSCL) and the Urban Development and Housing Department (UD&HD) of Bihar government". "This ultimately resulted in delayed/incomplete execution of projects. The financial management of PSCL was also deficient, as funds had been diverted for unapproved projects and incorrect utilisation certificates had been submitted," said the compliance audit report of the CAG for the year ended March 31, 2022, which was tabled in the Bihar assembly on Thursday. The contract management for the mission was also poor as the complete scheme did not fulfil the desired objectives, it ...

Budget 2024: From Chandrababu Naidu to Mamata Banerjee, here're CMs' views

Bengal has been completely deprived in this Union Budget, WB CM said

Ruckus in Bihar Assembly on reservation, proceedings adjourned till 2 PM

The Bihar assembly was on Wednesday adjourned till 2 PM as opposition members stood in the well of the House, demanding that the state's amended reservation laws be put in the ninth schedule of the Constitution. The opposition legislators did not relent despite repeated requests by Speaker Nand Kishor Yadav that they take their seats and words of admonition from Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who stood up to intervene. "It was at my instance that you all agreed to a caste survey after which quotas for SCs, STs, OBCs and the extremely backward classes were hiked," said Kumar. He told the House that the Patna High Court has "set aside the reservation laws, we have moved the Supreme Court. A formal request has also been made to the Centre for putting these in the ninth schedule". Notably, quotas for deprived castes were hiked to 65 per cent through the laws passed in November last year, which the Patna High Court quashed last month. Placing the laws, which breach the 50 per cent cap on

Centre denying special status for Bihar evokes cryptic response from Nitish

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday came out with a cryptic response to the Centre's refusal to grant special category status to the state. Kumar, whose JD (U) is a key ally of the ruling NDA at the Centre, was asked about the Union government's statement in Parliament the day before. "You will get to know all things slowly, and slowly (sab kuchh dhire dhire jaan jaaiyega)," the longest-serving CM of the state said, in reply to a volley of questions he faced from journalists at the Bihar Assembly. Flashing his trademark smile of ambiguity, the veteran leader rushed inside the House, waving at the posse of journalists that stood trying to read his impregnable mind. Notably, after the Lok Sabha polls in which the BJP fell short of majority, becoming heavily dependent on allies, the JD (U) had held a national executive meeting where a resolution was passed raising a fresh demand for special status. Leaders of the JD (U), which has two ministers in the Union government, insis

Budget 2024 reactions: BJP, ally Nitish Kumar and Opposition, who said what

Union Budget 2024: The Congress was quick to point out that the parts of Sitharaman's Budget were inspired from its Lok Sabha elections 2024 manifesto

Budget 2024: PM Modi allies Nitish, Naidu demands billions, pile pressure

For now, it seems that Modi will likely be able to manage those demands without blowing out the budget deficit.

INDIA bloc to hold protests over collapsed law & order situation in Bihar

The opposition INDIA bloc in Bihar on Wednesday said it will organise a state-wide agitation later this week over the alleged deterioration in the law and order situation. The announcement was made at a joint press conference of the alliance partners here. The law and order situation has completely collapsed in the state. Everyday, Bihar is witnessing cases of murder, kidnapping, extortion, rape, etc Why is Chief Minister Nitish Kumar maintaining a stoic silence on the current situation? RJD's state party chief Jagadanand Singh said. We... will organise a protest march on July 20 across the state against rising crimes in Bihar. This issue will also be raised in the assembly during the upcoming monsoon session, Singh said. Leader of Opposition in the assembly and senior RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also slammed the state government on the issue. Bihar witnessed several incidents that expose the current law and order situation. For instance husband and wife brutally murdered by stabbin

Bihar CM should 'strike', he's in position to get it done, says Congress

The Congress on Monday sought to know what Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is doing about the demand for special category status for the state and asserted that "he should strike" as he is in a position to get this done now. The opposition party's remarks come after Bihar ministers claimed that the latest report of NITI Aayog's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index 2023-24 vindicated the state's long-standing demand for greater central financial assistance. On July 12, NITI Aayog released the SDG India Index 2023-24 -- an assessment of the country's sustainable development. Bihar has figured at the bottom of the index despite improvements on some parameters. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said senior ministers in Bihar are now arguing that NITI Aayog's latest analysis vindicates their demand for special category status in the matter of Central assistance to the state. "Basically this would mean that instead of 70 per cent of such ...

PM Modi faces Budget pressure as Nitish Kumar seeks Rs 30,000 crore aid

Modi's biggest ally in the coalition - N Chandrababu Naidu of the Telugu Desam Party - has already made a request for more than $12 billion in aid over the next few years for Andhra Pradesh

Another bridge collapses in Bihar, 13th such mishap in three weeks

Bihar witnessed another bridge collapse on Wednesday, making it the 13th such incident in the state in a span of three weeks, an official said. The bridge collapsed at Mahishi village in Saharsa district earlier in the day, he said. It might be a small bridge or causeway. District officials have left for the spot. We are trying to gather more information about the incident, Additional Collector (Saharsa), Jyoti Kumar, said. There were no reports of any injury or fatality. The Bihar government has suspended at least 15 engineers in connection with the series of recent incidents of bridge collapse reported from various districts, including Siwan, Saran, Madhubani, Araria, East Champaran and Kishanganj. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had last week instructed officials to conduct a survey of all old bridges in the state and identify those that require immediate repair.

With four more bridge collapses in a day, Bihar tally touches 10 in 2 weeks

Four bridges collapsed within 24 hours in Bihar on July 3, marking the tenth such event in the state over the past 15 days. Here is why the bridges aren't able to stand tall in bad weather

Bihar set to become growth engine of East, says Minister Nitish Mishra

Bihar is planning to introduce a few policies in the next 2 months to attract capital in various potential sectors and is poised to become the growth engine of the East, State Industries and Tourism Minister Nitish Mishra has said. The state is implementing strategic measures to suit both large and small businesses in order to promote industry and employment, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to develop East India as a growth engine, he said. "Bihar is ready to participate in the country's development and become the growth engine of the East," Mishra said on the sidelines of Bihar Business Connect 2024 first roadshow in Kolkata on Monday. Over 50 companies represented by some nearly 90 officials and industrialists attended the event. The state is prepared to participate in the country's development through Invest India, he said encouraging industries to explore Bihar's reality and potential before making any judgments. "We will come out with new sectoral policies

Bihar govt has formed committee to probe recent bridge collapses: Minister

The Bihar government has formed a high-level committee to investigate the recent bridge collapses across the state, including six incidents in the past 13 days. The latest collapse took place at Khausi Dangi village in Kishanganj on Sunday, involving a small bridge built over Boond river in 2009-10 with MPLAD funds. Most of the collapsed bridges, including those under construction, were either built or being constructed by the state's rural works department (RWD). RWD Minister Ashok Choudhary told PTI on Tuesday that the committee, headed by the chief engineer, will analyse the causes behind these collapses and recommend necessary corrective actions. "The department has constituted a high-level committee headed by chief engineer to probe recent incidents of bridge collapse that have been reported from different parts of the state. The committee will find out the reasons and also suggest remedial measures," he said. The committee, tasked specifically with incidents related to RWD-b

JD(U) names Sanjay Jha working prez, seeks spl status or package for Bihar

The Janata Dal (United) on Saturday appointed Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kumar Jha as its working president and urged the Centre to consider either special category status or special package for Bihar, underlining the party's important role in the formation of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government. The party's national executive meeting chaired by its president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar flagged price rise and unemployment as "burning issues", as its political resolution expressed confidence that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government would take more effective steps to handle them. The resolution called for extensive probe into paper leak cases to ensure stringent action against the guilty so as to maintain the credibility of central competitive exams. There is also a need for Parliament to enact a strong law against leaks of examination papers, it added. Kumar's decision to appoint his confidant as the party's working president, a position not held by ..