Modi backs Nitish, says CM transformed state
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday praised Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, saying the state had shown in the past 15 years that inclusive economic development is possible with the right government in place, taking the right decisions and following the right policies.
Modi, who dedicated to the nation three petroleum sector projects in Bihar worth more than ₹900 crore through video conferencing, said his central government was working for the growth of all sectors in Bihar.
The PM praised the young people of Bihar, which he termed a “powerhouse” of talent. He said there was a time when some people would question what one could do in Bihar other than work on farms. He said the absence of big educational institutes used to force the young to step out of the state in search of opportunities.
“Institutes of higher learning — agriculture, medical and engineering colleges, including an IIT {Indian Institute of Technology), IIM {Indian Institute of Management}, NIFT {National Institute of Fashion Technology} and a national law institute each — have come up fast under Nitish Kumar in Bihar,” he said.
Modi’s speech came ahead of assembly elections due in Bihar, where his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is part of a coalition government headed by Kumar’s Janata Dal (United). Chief minister Kumar thanked the PM for the projects launched on Sunday.
Modi said Startup India, Mudra Yojana and such schemes had provided a boost to entrepreneurship and opened up selfemployment opportunities to the young people of Bihar. He also said there was a significant improvement in the state’s power situation over the last six years, where villages earlier used to get electricity for 2-3 hours and cities for 8-10 hours a day.
Modi said there was no dearth of capability or resources in the state. Yet, Bihar and other eastern India states always lagged behind in development because of political and financial reasons as well as apathy.
He also spoke about the shift in the state government’s work culture, saying there were days when one generation would witness the foundation laying ceremonies of projects and the next generation would witness their completion.
The PM said the special package given for Bihar few years ago had 10 big projects related to petroleum and gas worth ₹21,000 crore. The projects dedicated on Sunday include the Durgapur-Banka section of the Paradip-Haldia-Durgapur pipeline augmentation project and two liquified petroleum gas bottling plants — one at Banka of Indian Oil Corporation and another of Hindustan Power Corporation Limited at Harsidhi in East Champaran. He said the effort to connect eastern India with Paradip on the eastern seaboard and Kandla on the western seaboard began under the Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga Yojana and seven states would be connected through this pipeline, which is about 3,000km long. Reminding people that the good work done in the last 15 years must continue, he said, “We must ensure ‘sushasan’ (good governance)”.
“The PM’s comments, praising CM Nitish Kumar, smacks of political opportunism,” said political analyst DM Diwakar, a former director of the AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna.
“It was Modi who completely ignored Kumar’s fervent request with folded hands to declare Patna University a central varsity during its centenary function in 2018. Kumar, on the other hand, had raised a brouhaha {in 2015} over the PM’s DNA comment and vowed to never ever come together with the BJP again... The situation is much different today and both the leaders are singing paeans to each other,” he said. It was a reference to a comment by Modi that there seemed to be something wrong with Kumar’s DNA, recalling a dinner invitation by the latter which he had cancelled.