The NDA government led by Nitish Kumar has been voted back to power with a massive mandate, winning 202 seats out of 243 in the Assembly elections results declared on November 14. As the new government gets sworn in, the NDA government will have to work in mission mode from day one. The people’s aspirations from such a huge mandate would be sky high, and the new government has to deliver on the promises, as enunciated in the Sankalp Patra. Essentially, it is a mandate to develop Bihar as a frontline state of India.
PM Narendra Modi has profusely thanked the people of Bihar for such a massive mandate. Post the poll results, two terms used by him are very special and have a deep meaning. The first one is ‘Santushtikaran’, which roughly means satisfaction and contentment. As opposed to appeasement, the term means bringing satisfaction, happiness and a sense of contentment among the people through various welfare measures. The second prominent expression used by PM Modi is ‘Emotional Mode’ as opposed to ‘Election Mode’, generally referred to highlight the BJP’s continuous electoral victories. Thus, the new government in Bihar has to connect emotionally with the people and meet their aspirations.
In the context of Bihar, both the terms have a huge significance and, in a way, indicate the spirit of governance desired by PM Modi in Bihar. The faith reposed by the redefined MY (Mahila and Youth) is eagerly waiting to reshape their destiny. Since the youth is aspirational and impatient (adheer as described by PM Modi), the new government in Bihar has to deliver quickly on all fronts. Obviously, some of the election promises may take time to show visible results. Therefore, the new NDA government in Bihar has to priortise the various projects and schemes, whether ongoing or the new ones.
First priority for the new government is to provide the enabling environment for development in Bihar. The new government has to continue the infrastructure projects and further improve the connectivity of the state with the rest of the country. The ongoing infrastructure projects should be completed at the earliest. The law & order situation in Bihar witnessed a few hiccups in the run-up to the elections, and the new government has to quickly fix up the loose ends. Bihar has to acquire the image of a totally peaceful state, and the law enforcement has to be strictly monitored. Adequate power supply, water supply, connectivity, infrastructure and a stable law & order invariably attract investment which is so critical for Bihar.
The next important step is to find the resources to meet the aspirations of the people. Bihar loses considerable revenue because of the prohibition policy and therefore has to find alternative means of revenue to compensate for the loss. PM Modi has provided massive developmental aid to Bihar in the last one year and this factor too has been acknowledged by the vigilant voters of Bihar. But the state has to focus on higher revenue generation through better taxation and other government revenue options, while cutting down unnecessary expenditure. There is also a scope for more privatisation and corporate revenue in Bihar. Rs 10,000 received by the eligible women folk under ‘Mukhya Mantri Mahila Samman Yozna’ has already seen a satisfactory utilisation in Bihar.
As the most ambitious project to empower women, the next step to give balance Rs. 1.90 lacs to those who have shown promise is going to be a game changer for the M or Mahila factor. Generating resources for such a massive project is going to be a challenge. Among other options, some assistance can be sought from the private sector through CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). The success of even 25 lakh women through this scheme is going to significantly improve the social and economic fabric of the state.
As regards Youth or Yuva in Bihar, finding employment for one crore people is going to be the most difficult proposition for the new government. The NDA manifesto thankfully mentioned giving employment rather than the fanciful promise of giving a government job to each household by the opposition Mahagathbandhan. Yes, the vacant appointments in the state should be filled at the earliest. I look at this challenging task of employment in Bihar in two ways. First is to find employment for the youth within the state of Bihar, and second is to empower the youth of Bihar for a suitable job outside Bihar. The issue of migration from Bihar for job opportunities has been projected in a negative manner. The eligible youth of Bihar are obviously entitled to serve outside the state for more lucrative remuneration and other perks.
With almost eight crore population below the 35 years of age, any state is bound to have unemployment problem. Bihar is an agrarian state, but the youth are not much interested in conventional agriculture. PM Modi has therefore announced an ambitious Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through upgraded ITI (PM-SETU) – a centrally aided scheme with an investment of Rs. 60,000 crores. The scheme aims to modernise 1000 government ITIs to upgrade employability and skills, including digital learning. If implemented properly, then PM-SETU can be a game-changer for the youth of Bihar. More importantly, the skill sets would be useful to the youth of Bihar to find employment in other states too.
That brings me to suggest that Bihar, too, should have an exclusive ‘Skill Development Ministry’, with the best talent to head and function under it. Though Bihar’s Labour Ministry has looked after skill development so far, the time has come to have a separate ministry to make a visible difference quickly. The new ministry can hire the best talent within the country to emulate the best practices followed in other states. With better empowerment, the youth would be fit to tenant the vacant government jobs and other non-governmental job opportunities. The ministry has to look at making agriculture and fish farming more lucrative economically. Even Gram Panchayats should be tasked to attract the youth towards agriculture and make it economically viable as a profession for the youth.
The Bihar model of governance would be carefully watched by the electorate of opposition-ruled states like West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. The people in these states, too, are yearning for change and would like to experience the benefits of a Double-Engine government. Therefore, time is at a premium for the new state government of Bihar to meet the aspirations of the people quickly. More importantly, Bihar, as the second most populous state in the country, has to become a major driver towards the aim of Viksit Bharat @2047. The next five years for the NDA government in Bihar are critical to transform Bihar into the frontline state of India with emotional Santushtikaran governance.
