PATNA: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday asserted that the state would be elevated into the league of developed states by 2030, triggering sharp reactions from opposition parties.
Addressing a public meeting during his ongoing “Samriddhi Yatra” in Muzaffarpur, Nitish said his government would fulfil all its development promises by 2030. The state government’s “Saat Nischaya-3” programme has fixed the target of making Bihar a developed state by 2030, he asserted.
During the yatra, Nitish reiterated that providing jobs and employment to as many young people as possible in Bihar was the government’s priority.
To achieve this, he said industries would be established in all districts of the state and youth would be skilled so that they could easily find employment.
The Chief Minister also inaugurated and laid foundation stones for projects worth Rs 853 crore in Muzaffarpur district.
These included 89 new schemes valued at Rs 194 crore, the inauguration of 47 completed projects worth Rs 212 crore, and the launch of work on 36 projects amounting to Rs 447 crore.
Reacting to Nitish’s claim, Congress leader Rishi Mishra said Bihar ranked 20th or even lower among states on several parameters of economic development.
He questioned how Bihar could become a developed state when factories, including ethanol manufacturing units, were shutting down, and demanded an explanation from the Chief Minister.
RJD chief spokesperson Shakti Singh Yadav alleged that the Chief Minister’s claim was hollow, stating that Bihar had the lowest per capita income and that industrial units were closing down across the state.
Despite this, he said, the government was giving false assurances about setting up new industries.
BJP leader Suresh Rungta and JD(U) MLA Meena Kumari, among others, said special attention had been given to industrial growth over the past five years, asserting that economic prosperity would follow once one crore jobs and employment opportunities were provided to the youth.
Nitish launched the ‘Samriddhi Yatra’ on January 16 following the landslide victory of the National Democratic Alliance in the state Assembly elections, the results of which were announced on November 14 last year. The NDA won 202 of the 243 Assembly seats.