For a long time I didn’t feel like writing about Bihar. With every good news report, I hear or read five horrible ones. Nitish is certainly better than Lallu and Rabri and so say the various independent or sponsored reports appearing in the national newspapers.
But few traits of Nitish Kumar just hurt me and perhaps many of my class. One such recent news has a headline, ‘Nitish to lead Bihar delegation to Pakistan’. Nitish Kumar will head a high-level delegation of ministers and officials on a week-long visit to the neighbouring country. I could not understand the real reason behind this move.
After all analysis, it appears to be just to please his vote banks for which he is focusing all his energy and resources. I wish Nitish would have taken a visit of Malaysia or Indonesia. It would have been more useful for the state about which he keep son talking. Both the countries are Muslim countries and examples of how development can make the difference. Many Malaysian companies are working in India and playing a key role in the development of infrastructure. Nitish could have learnt about the way their manufacturing sector has developed as the world class source and is exporting extensively even in many places competing with Chinese. They could have certainly provided various assistances for Nitish’ state that is so much needed. Interestingly, why has not Nitish planned to visit Bangla Desh with which Bihar shares the international boundary?I wish Nitish accepts the suggestion and visit Bangla Desh to see how a country that was only the backward part of an Indian state, is doing better in many of the UN millennium human development parameters than India. Nitish can also take a note of apparel sector of Bangla Desh and how that is competing with India and providing employment to millions of the citizens of the country.
I shall further request Nitish to find out the education system of these countries and advise his friends of minority community in the state to focus on education system that follows modern curricula and not Madrassa system.
Nitish should appreciate the literacy level of the countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia and its advantages for the development of the economy. Bihar requires an intensive focus on the quality of education of the children and the adult literacy drive in rural Bihar with a mission similar to polio eradication drive.
Nitish appears to have failed in making any substantial dent in higher education of the state. With his engineering background, any one could have expected better. When every other state is flooding with the institutes of higher education, the majority of the children from Bihar are to go to other states, pay high fees in private colleges, live in hostels or lodges, and spend a huge lot creating extreme financial pressure on their parents.
His many tours throughout the year with different nomenclatures and Janata Darbar could have made the common people aware and appreciate the need of the education and skilling. But perhaps that is not the priority of Nitish Kimar.
I can appreciate that Nitish is to fight the two demons, hell bent to unseat him using the same vote bank.
However, I love the entrepreneurship however small it may be and the hard honest work of the migrants from the state that I see wherever I go in India. I salute them. They would have certainly done better with better education.
Bihar needs some outsiders to make it move in right direction.
