Politics of Speacial Status for Bihar during 2020 Assembly election

Nitish Kumar has been demanding special status for long time but Modi Govt. has not accepted this demand. There are chances that Special status may again become a poll plank for 2020 Assembly election.

Let us talk what is special status. This was a tool started in 1969 to provide financial assistance to some of the states. All States of North East have special status. Some of the criteria for special status stares are - hilly and difficult terrain, low population density / sizable tribal population, Strategic location along borders with neighboring countries, Economic and infrastructural backwardness, Non-viable nature of state finances.

Does Bihar fit in this list ? Bihar fits in only one category - Economic and infrastructural backwardness. Bihar lies in flat gangetic plain and its population density is highest in India. Bihar has many rivers and the soil is very fertile and the population is also hard working. So Why Bihar needs special status? By becoming special state, Bihar would be able to get more central grants and tax rebates. But will it be enough for Bihar's growth? As a person born and live in Bihar for more than 20 years, I do not think so. Bihar does not need a special status at all. Bihar was the one of the best governing states in 1960's. We people of Bihar voted for political parties who destroyed. It’s true that Bihar lost all of its minerals to Jharkhand in 2000. But still Bihar has one of the most fertile land in the country. Its water table is good, many major rives flow from Bihar. It cans still become the agriculture power house of the country like Punjab & Haryana.

My simple question is that why should other Indian states or central government pay for mis-governance of Bihar. Our political leaders looted and destroyed our state and now political leaders are asking for special status. It is our mess and we should be able to clean it with help of others. If special status is granted then what is the guaranty that Bihar will become a more developed state like Gujrat or Tamil Nadu? There may be a case that political leaders will have more money to spend and get more commission. Bihar has great potential for industrial development due to its proximity to natural resources of Chhotanagapur and cheap labor. Bihar has achieved @ 11% GDP growth for 5- 6 years back (sometimes back). One of the reason for this is the small base of GDP. Almost all the growth has come by public spending and we all know that only public spending cannot propel the growth. Private capital is very necessary for growth.

But why even after 15 years of Nitish Govt. investors are not investing in Bihar? The law and order has improved (compared to Lalu Era but still its very bad) but the confidence of investors are still lacking. The infrastructure is in very poor condition. Nitish's Govt. has done many good things for Bihar, but now he needs to something concrete. There is hardly any big change on the ground. So I am totally against granting of Special status to Bihar and I hope there should be some good debate on the issue during upcoming election campaign.

Bihar is backward primely due mindset of people of Bihar. We vote on basis of caste and we elect non-performing leaders. So, it is up to the current generation to develop Bihar rather than pressurizing Central Government over special status.