Asking them that law and order situation should be their first priority he said on getting information about any communal dispute, the DM should rush to the spot without any delay and take effective steps to bring the situation under control. A DM should not leave any communal dispute at the mercy of junior civil or police officer for solution. S/he should personally deal with the situation and ensure that situation does not vitiate further.

Nitish asked the divisional commissioners and DMs to prioritize sensitive land-related disputes and solve them by taking lawful decisions, otherwise such disputes can lead to law and order problems.

He said that since all the deputy collector land reforms (DCLRs) have been given powers under the Bihar Land Disputes Act the district administration should take steps to solve all complicated cases of land dispute by utilization of powers conferred on them.

The chief minister told DMs to keep a constant vigil on activities in various jails and asked them to give special thrust on speedy trial of serious and sensitive cases and book hardened criminals under the Crime Control Act.

He also advised the DMs and SPs to participate in the meetings of district monitoring committees being held under the chairmanship of the district judge concerned, and ensure that the monitoring committee meeting is held once in a month.

Incidentally, the chief minister address came ahead of the festival season in which vested interest sometimes tries to vitiate the communal atmosphere.

Besides, the five hour long video-conferencing followed reports of deteriorating law and order situation in the state.