Poor law and order cited by Japan to ditch Bihar IIT project

Patna, (Bihar Times): It is a major blow to the credibility of the Nitish Kumar government. Japan is no more keen to collaborate with the new Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) to come up in Bihar.Instead, it is putting all its money on the IIT that is to be set up in Andhra Pradesh.

Apart from Japan, Great Britain and the United States are also looking at joining hands with one of the three IITs to be established in Bihar, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh in Phase-I of the plan to increase the number of IITs.

The Indian government last year approached Japan with the idea of tying up with the IIT in Bihar. A concept note to that effect was also handed over to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during his visit to India in August last year.

However, reports appearing in newspaper from Mumbai said that when the two countries talked the deal out across the table, Japan expressed its reservations about supporting the IIT-Bihar initiative. An Indian delegation had recently visited Japan to spell out the details of the collaboration and introduce the Japanese to the functioning of the IIT system.

Members who were part of the team told the newspaper that the Centre had tried to push the Buddha connection, but the Japanese were not convinced.Sanjeev Sinha, director (new business group), UBS Investment Bank, and the mediator between the Indian and Japanese governments, was quoted as saying from Tokyo: “The law and order problem in Bihar makes it our last choice. But between Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh, there is a high inclination to associate with the IIT to come up in Hyderabad. Not only is international access better there, we believe that it is also progressing the best in terms of time.”

Though the newspaper mentioned Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh actually IIT is likely to come up in Medak district of that state. The Japanese government is likely to send its confirmation on IIT in Andhra Pradesh later this month. A Japanese delegation will visit New Delhi on April 30, added Sinha, also the president of the IIT Alumni Association in Japan.

Earlier, the Japanese were keen on supporting the IIT that is likely to come up in Rajasthan. That’s because the Japanese felt that the IIT would probably come upin the 1,483-km Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor that Japan is partly funding.

However, with no decision on the location the institution will come up at, Japan feels that Andhra Pradesh may be the best bet.

Japan might have cited law and order as the reason but the state government’s insistence to allot land in the low-lying area near river Sone in Bihta, 42 km from Patna, might have further deterred the Japanese, who appear to be very much particular about the cite. So far cashing in on the Buddhist connection is concerned a plot of land in the vicinity of Bodh Gaya would have been more attractive to lure the Japanese.

300 years back Britishers colonized India for raw material and cheap labour to fuel its Industrial Growth. After Independence the politicians (mostly influential and rich capitalists from other parts of India) saw an opportunity in enslaving Bihar and its people to fuel industrial and agricultural growth in other states. All they did was to damage the reputation of Bihar (just like Britishers used to do about Indian and their culture), damage the democratic institutions and make people poor. Their game plan succeeded. Bihar did not see opening of any good academic institutions and other establishment. The congress rule from the centre saw that no cheif minister stays in power for more than a year. It increased the divide of caste and religion just like Britishers did. They used and are still using media to tarnish the image and making hate compaign against Biharis to keep their moral low. India gained at the cost of Bihar. Bihar has become source of cheap labor. The land of Bihar is fertile but its people are working as labourer in Punjab and other parts. Bihar is now completely enslaved by the people of other states. Biharis should wake up and fight for its freedom. If the selfish politicians of India don't wake up they should be ready for a bloody revolution like Nepal.

Singh

anugrah_singh@yahoo.com

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Why so much hue and cry over Japan ditching IIT Patna? Isn't it supposed to be Indian Institute of Technology? Isn't it the responsibility of India? Since when did Japan became a party to it?

The first IIT was established in 1951 and since then IITs have been declared as Institutes of National Importance by the Government of India. In more than 50 years of smoothly running several highly efficient and productive IITs, if India cannot bear the burden of financial assistance and technical expertise for setting up another IIT in India:

It is shameful for India.
It is shameful for the so called "Brains of India".
Is the elite IIT Patna being established to churn more such brains?
Were not prestigious IITs founded to train an elite that could build and manage massive industrial development projects?
Where are those elites?
Isn't Bihar better off without such an IIT?
Doesn't Bihar produce more IITians each year than any other state?
Does government of Bihar know what it wants to accomplish with the new IIT Patna?
Do those who demand an IIT in Bihar know what will be achieved at the end of the Day?

If it was really meant to be Indian Institute of Technology, it should not matter whether Japan came along to join the party or left the caravan abruptly.
Pradeep

pkr5ul@gmail.com

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Truly said, but we are empty handed again. We again lost, not an IIT partner but our image. We were hoping that, we have made some moves and done enough that other will help to achieve to follow the rest of the path toward the glowry which Bihar once had in past. It is not the rejection which hurts me most, it hurts me most that we cannot do anything other than disagree with these opnions.

Why these people make mokery of us by some way or other? It is what we deserve?

For me the answer is one - ignorance, the root of everything - people know everything and anything by news and not by its merit. We have very tarnished image in media, so we deserve the worst treatment from the rest of the world. Whatever we do or achieve is no matter till it reflects in media.. But, who will do that. So, till we don't get someone who will make it for us, nothing can happen.

Hope this tunnel has some light at its end.

It is shocking to hear that japan has dumped its plan to help in setting IIT in Bihar, the land of BUDDHA, the land with which it is attached spiritually and religiously. Even more shocking was the lame excuse given for this as poor law and order problem.

If the problem of law and order is as grievous then it should dump the plan of reviving the NALANDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY also. Because most of the student who will come to study here will be from japan and other buddhist country and they will be its prime victim.

I do smell foul play in this whole drama by some chuvinist bureaucrat and corrupt politicians who do not want bihar to progress. If that is not the case then why japan will come with discrimination against one of the indian state with which it is most intimately connected for thosand of years. Crime takes place everywhere and no place in this world is immune to this problem. Take for case, in delhi and its suburb the crime rate is relatively high still every alternate day you will hear news of new MNC opening its office there. High crime rate as such dosnt deter them. I am not trying to give excuse for poor law and order scenario in bihar and i know that serious work is needed to strengthen our law implementing machinery and nitsh govt. is seriously working on it.

Now if we take case of infrastructure and connectivity then bihta which is not very far from patna is better connected by rail road and air than medak in AP. Also once the institution work starts then it will automaticaly attract more investment side by side in form of hotels, malls etc which will improve the infrastructure and the work will go on making it self sustainable.

It is the most fortunate time for we all serious bihari to come together and work for betterment of bihar and not let ill will of some mischivious element, to overcome our zeal of making vibrant bihar,who are eager to tarnish our already shaky image. And media will have to play great role in it.

This news item earlier appearing in 'Times of India' appears to be a motivated one aimed at spiking interest of Japanese government in Bihar for good. If the reasoning is accepted then 'Nalanda University Revival' attempt is also doomed. This news item is in line with the earlier successfull attempt by some higher officials, with vested interest, scuttling this issue from being taken up for a formal discussion between PM's at summit level. This resulted in just a passing reference on Japanese collaboration in regards to IIT Patna, at the dinner where the CM Bihar was present.

Though S&T Dept. had made a valiant effort to see that same is decided upon at summit level itself, it could not happen even when it was so listed in the agenda of the summit because of mechanisms of a offcials better placed. Inspite of the various media reports, this proposal for collaboration with Japan was scuppered on that very date, leaving a frusterated S&T department of Bihar. .

Japanese collaboration would definitely be good and provide a much needed edge to IIT Patna over other IITs. It would be good if Bihar government using services of Mr. N K Singh, who seems to have worked earlier in Japan, and Mr Saran, who as a former Foreign Secretary still enjoys a good clout as seen in his being retained as chief interlocuter for proposed nuclear pact with USA, can forcefully convince Budhdhist countries on a partnership with Bihar. This partnership has to grow much beyond the symbolic stuff like collaboration for a mere institute and so on. State needs to build on its intrinsic strength of being spiritual hub of India and much of Asia Pacific. It will be foolhardy to depend on the central administration which represents just a bunch of regionalist interest and agendas, as against the national interest.

Also state should broaden its strategic partnership with other countries like Fiji, Surinam, French Guyana, Holland etc, having sizable presence of immigrants from the state, on the line of one being pursued with Mauritius. The same can be done under the aegis of Bihar Foundation by having its offcies in each of these countries.

We should not count on Japan. We should consider it a blessing. The collaboration with USA, Canada, or any other English speaking country will be great. There is no place for politics when we are talking about one of the most important issues for Bihar in this decade. Please stop talking about Lalu Yadav or any other politician.
Please let me know if Nitish Government would like to meet with top US officials,e.g. US Secretary of Energy (He is responsible for advancing Science and Technology education) or previous US Ambassadors or top US University Presidents, to discuss collaboration. We have to unite and be ready to get assistance from everyone including Bihari cabinet ministers in Delhi.
B. K. Singh, USA

This law and order appears nothing but a cock and bull story. As we know, Bihar bashers have always used the 3C-LR model of Bihar bashing. The 3C stands for corruption, casteism and criminalization of politics while LR stands for Land reforms. We have all seen 60 sixty years of debate on this has not led anywhere. We can discuss this for another sixty years without any change to Bihar and Biharis.

Who in his right mind can claim that Medak in AP has a better law and order than Patna? Or better connectivity?

I find it rather bizarre that something announced by the Japanese PM in the Indian parliament has got overturned like this. Also, what kind of a foreign policy do we have that a foreign country can criticize the law and order of one state and get away with it? Do the mandarins in the external affairs ministry have no shame to allow this type of things?

Frankly, one gets the feeling "Daal mein kuch kala hai" ya phir "Puri daal hi kaali hai"

Thakur Vikas Sinha