Patna: Bihar got a special focus in the just-tabled Union Budget 2025 with a host of announcements like the Makhana Board, expansion of IIT Patna and a food processing unit.
In her eighth Budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam proposed to set up a Makhana Board in the state. "A Makhana Board will be established in the state to improve production, processing, value addition, and marketing of makhana. The people engaged in these activities will be organised into FPOs. The Board will provide handholding and training support to makhana farmers and will also work to ensure they receive the benefits of all relevant government schemes," she said.
National Food Institute
Apart from this, Sitharaman also proposed to set up a food processing plant in Bihar which will benefit farmers. "In line with our commitment towards 'Purvodaya', we will establish a National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management in Bihar. The institute will provide a strong fillip to food processing activities in the entire Eastern region. This will result in enhanced income for the farmers through value addition to their produce and skilling, entrepreneurship and employment opportunities for the youth," she said.
Agri Districts Programme
She further said that the PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana for developing agri districts programme will cover 100 districts with low productivity, moderate crop intensity and below-average credit parameters. It aims to enhance agricultural productivity, adopt crop diversification and sustainable agriculture practices, augment post-harvest storage at the panchayat and block level, improve irrigation facilities and facilitate the availability of long-term and short-term credit. This programme is likely to help 1.7 crore farmers, she added.
Expansion of IIT Patna
Under the expansion of IIT, the hostel and other facilities at IIT Patna will be broadened. "Total number of students in 23 IITs has increased 100 per cent from 65,000 to 1.35 lakh in the past 10 years. Additional infrastructure will be created in the 5 IITs started after 2014 to facilitate education for 6,500 more students," she said.
Greenfield Airport
Acknowledging the absence of a greenfield airport in Bihar she said, "Greenfield airports will be facilitated in Bihar to meet the future needs of the State. These will be in addition to the expansion of the capacity of Patna airport and a brownfield airport at Bihta."
Western Koshi Canal Project
Financial support will be provided for the Western Koshi Canal ERM Project benefitting a large number of farmers cultivating over 50,000 hectares of land in the Mithilanchal region.
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