Patna. The President has given important instructions on a bill related to providing special financial assistance to Bihar from the Central Government. On a bill introduced by RJD Rajya Sabha MP Amarendradhari Singh alias AD Singh, President Draupadi Murmu has recommended Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to consider the bill. President Draupadi Murmu has recommended that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman should consider the bill to provide special financial assistance to Bihar, presented by RJD MLA AD Singh in the Rajya Sabha.
Opinion given on private bill
RJD MP AD Singh had introduced this bill as a private member’s bill in the Upper House in September, putting forward the key demand of both RJD and JDU. RJD MP AD Singh had introduced the Special Financial Assistance to Bihar State Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha on 1 September 2023. Now the President has issued instructions regarding this. It states that the President of India, on being informed by Member of Parliament AD Singh of the Special Financial Assistance to the State of Bihar Bill, 2023, recommends the Bill for consideration by the Rajya Sabha under Article 117(3) of the Constitution Is.
Bihar has been demanding special status from the Center
The ruling Nitish government in Bihar along with RJD has been demanding for giving special status to Bihar for a long time. RJD MP Amarendradhari Singh alias AD Singh has also drawn attention to the issue of backwardness of Bihar on various parameters. For this, he has demanded from the Central Government to provide special financial assistance for Bihar. It is for this demand that the RJD MP had introduced the Special Financial Assistance to Bihar State Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha. Now the President has recommended consideration of the bill.
Nitish Kumar has a big agenda
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, after releasing the caste survey report recently, had said that there are more than 94 lakh such families in Bihar, whose monthly income is up to Rs 6,000 per month. CM Nitish has announced to provide financial assistance to such families. In this, there is a plan to give Rs 2 lakh to each family. To make this a reality, he has demanded from the Center to give special state status to Bihar. Now in this sequence, the President’s recommendation on AD Singh’s bill is another new hope through which Bihar can get special financial assistance.
Additional assistance has also been banned now
Both parties have been demanding “special status” for Bihar after the bifurcation of the state for two decades, arguing that Bihar has suffered a significant loss of Jharkhand’s revenue. The Center has refused to grant special category status to any state based on the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission, although Odisha and Andhra Pradesh have also made similar arguments. While making demands from his party, the RJD MP highlighted the backwardness of Bihar on many parameters.
Like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar also wants help
However, the Center had clarified its stand in Parliament in 2018 itself, saying that after the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission, special category states have ceased to exist and thus, no state has been given special category status. . However, the Central Government has agreed to provide special assistance to the State of Andhra Pradesh to compensate for the additional Central share to be received by the State during 2015-16 to 2019-20, if financed through Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS). It will be shared between the Center and the State in the ratio of 90:10.