The demand for special status for Bihar and the state’s ‘inclusive’ model of governance will be made key issues in the coming elections, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said here on Monday.
Kumar said the demand for special status not only had the backing of the people of Bihar but also from an expert committee headed by the current Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan.
“Although we were not completely satisfied with the Raghuram Rajan report and our members gave a dissent note, still there was enough in the report for enabling a special dispensation for Bihar…However, after showing some positive signs, it has been kept in the cold storage,” the Chief Minister said at an Assocham event. The special status would enable Bihar to attract more investment because of tax concessions.
In an oblique reference to Narendra Modi, Kumar said in the environment of elections, the public discourse was being changed with people being fed with pipe-dreams. “It is being projected as if everything from our border problems with China, Pakistan and Bangladesh to growth, there would be a magic wand which will solve the issues,” the Chief Minister said.
In his welcome speech, Assocham President Rana Kapoor said with Bihar being power sufficient by 2015, investment was expected to leapfrog. He sought from the Chief Minister special schemes for the small and medium enterprises by developing clusters and common facilities.