NEW DELHI: Bihar was written all over the Union Budget as it made significant allocations for the NDA-ruled state that will face assembly polls later this year.
From Nirmala Sitharaman draping herself in a Madhubani saree gifted by Padma awardee Dulari Devi, who hails from Mithilanchal and is an ace in Madhubani paintings, to the finance minister considerably loosening her purse strings for the underdeveloped state, there was a sense of purpose behind the slew of allocations.
They ranged from promoting agriculture through a Makhana Board and financial support for the Western Kosi Canal Project, to greenfield airports and plans to expand IIT Patna.
North Bihar, especially Mithilanchal, could benefit from these targeted investments, which could potentially influence the electoral outcome there. Mithlanchal has about 60 seats in the assembly, 40 of which were won by the NDA in the 2020 state elections.
“The budget’s focus on agriculture is a boon to farmers in Mithilanchal, where farming is the primary livelihood for a majority of the population,” said Dr Archana Kumari, a political researcher from Patna.
Mithilanchal produces 85% of the country’s Makhana (fox nuts). The Makhana Board will benefit more than 5 lakh farmers cultivating it in Bihar’s Darbhanga, Madhubani, Saharsa, Supual, Madhubani, Sitamarhi, Saharsa, Katihar, Purnia, Kishnaganj, Araria and other districts.
Apart from this, the budget promised financial support for the western Kosi canal, which will benefit farmers cultivating around 50,000 hectares in the Mithilanchal region.
Other proposals included setting up a new National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management in the state.