Nitish Kumar to launch movement if Bihar doesn't get special status

Nitish Kumar said that Bihar needs a special status for its upliftment. He threatened to launch a movement if Centre does not accord the much-awaited status to the state. If the Centre fails to support their demand then it means that they are against Bihar's development, he added.

Patna: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday reiterated the demand for a special status to Bihar, citing the pace of development recorded by the state in the recent years. Issuing an ultimatum to the Centre, Kumar said that he would launch a campaign for the status and if the Centre did not support then it meant that they were against Bihar's development.

Addressing the Chief Minister Entrepreneur Scheme program at Bapu Auditorium in Patna, Kumar said that they have been requesting the Centre to accord a special status to Bihar several times. "Many people need help. In order to cater to the needs of all these people we would take at least five years. So we want the Centre to accord us a special status so that the state can get uplifted in two years instead of five years," he said.

Kumar further said that there was a time when Bihar was ahead many other states and development had started from this state itself. But now the state is lagging behind others so there is a need for a special status to move ahead, he said adding that if the status was not given soon then a movement would be launched here. "If the Centre refrains from supporting our demand then it means that it is against Bihar's development," he added.

Kumar lamented that the good work that is done in Bihar never gets much publicity. "The media is controlled by the central government. The media here is not at fault. It is the people from Delhi who come here and say whatever they like about Bihar. These criticisms get a lot of space. I request the media with folded hands to publish my demand for a special status for Bihar," he said.

Kumar said that the caste-based survey has already been completed and it would benefit people of all castes. He said that the survey report was passed by Bihar Assembly and now it has to be signed off by Governor Rajendra Arlekar. "The Governor was not in the state but today we came to know that he has returned. It is expected that he will sign the bill today itself. Once signed it will come into effect from today itself," he said.