India News | JDU MP Demands Special Category State Status for Bihar
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. A JD(U) MP on Tuesday demanded that the government accord the special category state status to Bihar to bring it at par with others on economic parameters.
New Delhi, Dec 14 (PTI) A JD(U) MP on Tuesday demanded that the government accord the special category state status to Bihar to bring it at par with others on economic parameters.
During a debate on the second batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2021-22 in Lok Sabha, Sunil Kumar Pintu said Bihar needs to be given the special category status for the growth and development of India.
Citing a recent NITI Aayog report, he said Bihar was ranked the poorest state in the country in the first Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI).
The Bihar chief minister has repeatedly requested the Centre for the grant of the special category status, not a special package, so that the state can attract industries, he said.
Industries would come only when the government accords the special category status to Bihar, he added.
The JD(U) is part of the central government.
Following the release of the report, the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar made a fresh pitch for the grant of special category status to the state, a demand it has been making for the "past 10-12 years".
In a letter to NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar, the state's Minister for Planning and Implementation Bijendra Yadav asserted that Bihar "fulfilled all the criteria" set for grant of special status.
The opposition latched on to the NITI Aayog report to rubbish the claim of "rapid development" of the state since Nitish Kumar's ascent to power.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)