CM for special help from Centre for development of poor states

Patna: Chief minister Nitish Kumar, who has repeatedly demanded that the Centre should grant special category state status to Bihar, on Monday rooted for an all-inclusive central development policy to provide “special help” for the growth of poor and less developed states.

Kumar’s statement, made at the 72nd annual function of Bihar Industries Association (BIA), can be seen in the backdrop of the Centre discontinuing the practice of granting special state status to backward states.

While maintaining that the Centre’s support was needed for Bihar’s development, the CM asked the industrialists to keep reiterating the demand for special status for the state so that the central government thinks about it. “We have made a new industrial policy to attract investments, but that alone will not help until the Centre supports us,” he said.

“There should be an economic policy for the development of all states. A new policy for progress of poor states such as Bihar should be mulled by the Centre,” he said.

The CM said the country’s GDP currently depended only on the progress of few developed states. “Biharis account for 8.3% of the country’s population, but our contribution in the GDP is only 3.1%. Why can’t it be 8.3%?” he asked.

Kumar said his government had been supporting the GST Bill since the very beginning. “While the GST council is finalising the modalities, I think the states should be allowed to collect taxes and transfer the Centre’s share to it,” he said and hoped the GST would be implemented from April 2017.

The CM seemed miffed at the BIA functionaries who raised certain issues pertaining to the Bihar Industrial Investment Promotion Policy. “This is not the forum to talk about it. I felt as if I was at an udyami panchayat, not at your function. Those matters should be raised at appropriate platform,” he said.

Kumar also said people were calling him “crazy” for enforcing prohibition in the state. “But the social change it has triggered will be visible in the next few years,” he said.

Earlier in the day, BIA president Ram Lall Khetan was re-elected for the next term. Other functionaries for 2016-17 are: A K P Sinha, Sanjay Kumar Bharatiya, Sheo Kumar Maskara, Arvind Kumar Singh and Ashwani Gupta. Industrialist K P S Keshri and three Bihar-based industries were felicitated by the BIA on the occasion.