Mafia Raj of past kept Bihar poor, it is now set for high growth: Modi

Hindustan Times

10 hours ago

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that the Congress and the RJD had hurt the pride of Bihar and kept the state poor 'due to mafia raj, goonda raj and corruption' despite zealously announced slogan 'Garibi Hatao' being there for generations. But the state, he said, was now set for a development leap.
The PM was speaking at Siwan after laying the foundation stone and inaugurating multiple development projects worth ₹11,000 crore, which include new Vaishali-Deoria railway line with a new train service on the route and another Vande Bharat Express between Pataliputra and Gorakhpur via Muzaffarpur and Bettiah. He also flagged off a state-of-the-art locomotive -- the first built at Marhowra plant for export to the Republic of Guinea.
Modi said that the 'License Raj' of the Congress did not allow Bihar to move out of poverty and the worst sufferers were the deprived lot from Dalit, Mahadalit, Other Backward Classes and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs), while in the last 11 years a record 25 crore Indians had moved out of poverty and the feat has drawn praise from institutions like the World Bank.
'Bihar under chief minister Nitish Kumar played a key role in it, as 3.75-crore people from the state have pulled themselves out of poverty. Despite so many years of independence, half the population lived below the poverty line. People struggled to beat poverty, as they could not find a way to beat it. The state was reduced to be a centre of migration. Now, it is time to be wary of the same forces that kept it poor as they are again desperate for power while the state has prepared the launchpad for rapid growth,' he added.
He said that the 'panja' and 'lantern' (Congress and RJD party symbols) worked with a simple motive of 'Parivar Ka Saath Aur Parivar Ka Vikas' (Support to family, growth to family), while the NDA works for 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' (Growth for all). 'Their interest never goes beyond family and they don't even spare Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar,' he said, referring to the controversy surrounding Baba Saheb's picture purportedly kept near the feet of RJD chief Lalu Prasad on the latter's birthday.
'I have noticed posters seeking an apology for the insult of Baba Saheb. The entire country saw what RJD did to Baba Saheb, but they will not apologise. Ambedkar remains in the heart of Modi, while they keep it at their feet. They made false promises of 'Garibi Hatao' to people and filled their coffers, while our government has already built four crore houses for the poor and three crore more are being built. Modi is not the kind to get satisfied with work already done for the poor, as a lot more needs to be done to ensure that not a single person is left out, as you all are my family' he said.
He warned that those who brought 'jungle raj' to Bihar were looking for an opportunity to repeat their old deeds. 'You have to be very cautious for the bright future of your children. People who are ready to put the brakes on Bihar's developmental journey have to be kept at bay, as a prosperous Bihar is important for a prosperous India,' he added.
Remembering India's first President Dr Rajendra Prasad, Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narain and social reformer Braj Kishor Prasad, he said Siwan was the land that lent strength to democracy and Constitution and played a big role in the freedom movement. 'We are trying to take the same spirit forward with inclusive growth so that nobody is discriminated against and even the world recognises India's growth journey to be the third largest economy. I have faith in your abilities, as you are the ones who ended jungle Raj and then worked with the NDA to put the state on track,' he added.
The PM said that Marhowra rail factory is an example of the kind of Bihar NDA striving to create. 'With the export of locomotives, Saran, which was abandoned by the RJD as backward, has made its place on the global map. Jungle Raj had stalled the growth engine, but now Bihar's engine will run in Africa. Bihar will be a big centre for make in India and contribute to the nation's growth,' he said, adding more projects and development initiatives would take Bihar towards a bright future and make life easy for all through increased opportunities.
Highlighting the transformative journey of Bihar, the PM said in the last 10-11 years over 55,000 kms of rural roads had been built, 1.5-crore houses had got power connection and tap water, 45,000 common service centres had been started and now there was a wave of start-up in towns and cities. 'We are striving to remove every hurdle for the poor. The houses that people have got are not just four walls, but other places to nurture dreams and resolve. Bihar alone has got 57 lakh pucca houses, out of which 1.10-lakh are for Siwan alone. Over 50,000 families have got instalments for their houses today,' he added.
He said that with the new train, now the two pilgrim places of Baba Hariharnarh and Baba Gorakhnath have been connected. 'Buddhist places have also got train connectivity. Such projects will boost tourism and create more opportunities,' he said, starting off his speech in Bhojpuri to connect with the masses.
Bihar Governor Arif Mohammad Khan, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, union ministers Jitan Ram Manjhi, Giriraj Singh, Lalan Singh, Chirag Paswan, Ramnath Thakur, Nityanand Rai, Satishchandra Dubey, Raj Bhushan Choudhary,Deputy CMs Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, state ministers, including Health minister Mangal Pandey, former union minister Upendra Kushwaha and several others were present on the occasion.
Nitish Kumar thanked the PM for focussing on Bihar's rapid developments through a lot of new projects and programmes, cited special financial assistance in the union budgets and termed the Centre's decision to hold caste-based Census a big initiative.
Referring to the Opposition's attack, he said that 'they keep speaking absurd things, while the changed reality is for all to see'. 'What was the situation prior to 2005? Today, the presence of so many women at the rally indicates the positive change that the state has witnessed. Earlier the girls did not even venture out of home,' he added.
Fourth visit this year
This is PM's fourth visit to Bihar this year and third since April 24 in what is viewed as a build up for the crucial state elections scheduled in October-November. He reached the venue in a road show, waving to the people from an open vehicle along with CM Nitish Kumar and Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary.
Siwan is significant, as it is the birthplace of India's first President Rajendra Prasad and remained an RJD stronghold due to sizable population of Muslims and Yadavs and emergence of late Bahubali Md Shahabuddin.
Projects
In keeping with the government's focus on conservation and rejuvenation of river Ganga, the PM also inaugurated six Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) under the Namami Gange project worth over ₹1,800 crore catering to the needs of people in the region.
He also laid the foundation stone for water supply, sanitation and STPs worth over ₹3,000 crore in various towns across Bihar aiming to provide clean and safe drinking water to the citizens of these towns.
He also laid the foundation stone for 500 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) capacity in Bihar. Standalone BESS are being installed at 15 grid substations of the state, including Muzaffarpur, Motihari, Bettiah, Siwan among others. The capacity of the battery to be installed in each sub-station is between 20 to 80 MWh. It will save the distribution companies from buying electricity at expensive rates by feeding the already stored electricity back to the grid directly benefiting the consumers.
The Prime Minister also released the first instalment to more than 53,600 beneficiaries of PMAY-U in Bihar. He handed over keys to a few beneficiaries to mark the Grih Pravesh Ceremony of more than 6,600 completed houses of PMAY U.