5 Questions: If Bihar a backward state, there must be policy, investment, says Rajiv Pratap Rudy

NITI Aayog has published a document that says Bihar is India’s poorest state. I said the country cannot grow without developing Bihar’s 12 crore population.

What was your demand?

The CM (Nitsh Kumar) has also accepted that Bihar is a backward state, hence we should be given backward status. If Bihar needs the status of a backward state, there must be niti (policy), nivesh (investment).

What kind of policy do you want?

A policy for youth, infra, IT and greenfield airports, for women’s mortality, education, child health, etc. So I am demanding that the state bring a policy paper on each of these and then come back to the Centre on the backwardness issue.

But you raised it in Parliament…

Yes… because it’s a NITI Aayog report which has placed the state (at the bottom).

In Lok Sabha, BJP and JD(U) members could not agree on implementing central projects?

Under Phase 3 of the Centre’s rural roads scheme, 6,000 km of roads have been sanctioned. But Bihar has only given a proposal for 1,300 km. The Centre was saying the proposals have not come and we are unable to sanction money. Who is to be blamed?