राज्‍य में अपराध नियंत्रण एक बड़ी चुनौती थी

पिछले विधान सभा के चुनाव के दौरान बिहार की जनता से मैंने एक वादा किया था कि मैं राज्‍य में कानून के शासन को पुन: बहाल करूँगा ।

ये कतई आसान न था । मुझे इस प्रयास में उस मिथक को तोड़ना था कि बिहार में अपराध नियंत्रण किसी के वश में नहीं है । मैं इसके लिये कृतसंकल्‍प था किन्‍तु मुझे इस बात का ख्‍याल रखना था‍ कि हमें इस उद्देश्‍य की प्रा‍प्ति कानून के दायरे में ही करनी थी । विगत में देश के विभिन्‍न भागों से आयी खबरों के कारण मुझे इस बात का इल्‍म था कि कानून-व्‍यवस्‍था के नियंत्रण के नाम पर अक्‍सर मानवाधिकारों का उल्‍लंघन होता है । इसी लिये मुझे यह सुनिश्चित करना था कि हमारी लक्ष्‍य प्राप्‍ति की दिशा में इस प्रकार की चूक न हो । अपराध नियंत्रण के संदर्भ में सर्वप्रथम मेरा ध्‍यान आर्म्‍स एक्‍ट के अंतर्गत दायर किये उन हजारों मामलों की तरफ गया जो वर्षों से लंबित थे । आर्म्‍स एक्‍ट के अंतर्गत तीन साल तक की सजा का प्रावधान है और इन मामलों में मुख्‍यत: राज्‍य के पुलिसकर्मी ही गवाह होते हैं । मैंने महसूस किया कि इन केसों का शीघ्र निष्‍पादन संभव है ------ अगर उनसे जुड़े गवाहों की उपस्थिति न्‍यायालयों में सुनिश्चित की जाए ।

हमारी सरकार ने तत्‍पश्‍चात बिहार पुलिस मुख्‍यालय में एक विशेष कोषांग की स्‍थापना ऐसे ही सारे मामलों के निष्‍पादन एवं इनसे जुड़े गवाहों को न्‍यायालयों में उपस्थित कराने के लिए की------ जिससे कानून तोड़ने वालों को समुचित सजा मिल सके । मैंने अधिकारियों की निर्देश दिया कि गवाहों को उपस्थित कराने के लिए वे यथासंभव न्‍यायालय से एक से अधिक तिथि की मांग न करें ।

मेरा ऐसा मानना है कि न्‍याय करना न्‍यायालय का कार्य है किन्‍तु सरकार का यह दायित्‍व है कि वह त्‍वरित न्‍याय के हेतु समुचित व्‍यवस्‍था करें । इस दिशा में हमारी सरकार ने न्‍यायालयों ऐसे कई गवाहों की उपस्थिति भी सुनिश्चित कराई जो झारखंड राज्‍य की स्‍थापना के बाद वहॉं चले गये थे । हमारे इन प्रयासों का जल्‍द असर हुआ और आर्म्‍स एक्‍ट के हजारों मामलों का निष्‍पादन त्‍वरित गति से हुआ । इस संदर्भ में मैं अपना-पराया भूल गया । इस बात से शीघ्र ही सभी अवगत हो गये कि कानून अपना काम करने लगी है । अपराधियों के बीच जुर्म करने के बाद कानून की पहूँच से दूर बने रहने का गुमान खत्‍म होता दिखने लगाA

इन प्रयासों से आम लोगों में एक संदेश गया और उनमें सरकार के प्रति विश्‍वास जागृत हुई । उन्‍हें यह अहसास हुआ कि अब कानून तोड़ कर सजा से बचना किसी के लिये संभव न हो । तत्‍पश्‍चात राज्‍य के विभिन्‍न क्षेत्रों में बहुत ऐसे लोग, जो किसी न किसी पुराने मामलों में सजा दिलाने के लिये न्‍यायालयों में उपस्थित होना चाहते थे] अब खासे भयमुक्‍त हो कर आगे आने लगे ।

इससे कानून तोड़ने वालों को भी समझ में आ गया कि हमारी सरकार अपराध नियंत्रण हेतु कितनी सजग है । जिन्‍हें अपनी काले शीशे चढ़े वाहनों की खिड़कियों से बंदूके दिखाने का शौक था या फिर उन्‍हें जिन्‍हें शादी-विवाह के अवसर पर शामियाने में अपनी गैर-लाईसेंसी हथियार से गोली दागकर शक्ति प्रदर्शन की अभिरूचि थी यह समझने में कतई वक्‍त नहीं लगा ।

सन 2006 में मैंने लंबित मामलों के त्‍वरित निष्‍पादन हेतु एक मींटिग आहूत की जिसमें पटना उच्‍च न्‍यायालय के मुख्‍य न्‍यायाधीश और अन्‍य न्‍यायाधीशों के अलावे सभी जिलाधीश, पुलिस अधीक्षक और लोक अभियोजक शामिल हुये । मेरी जानकारी में भारत में ये अपने प्रकार की पहली पहल थी । हमने एक 'एक्‍शन प्‍लान' के तहत हजारों लंबित मामलों की सुनवाई हेतु 'स्‍पीडी ट्रायल' की व्‍यवस्‍‍था की, जिसके कारण हजारों मुजरिमों को सजा मिली । कई मामलों की सुनवाई जेल प्रांगण में भी शुरू की गई । इन मामलों में हुये त्‍वरित कार्यवाही से अपराधियों में कानून के प्रति भय हुआ । मैंने तो बस यह संदेश दिया था कि हमारी सरकार अपराध नियंत्रण की दिशा में किसी तरह की कोताही बर्दाश्‍त नहीं करेगी । इस संदर्भ में माननीय न्‍यायालयों एवं न्‍यायिक प्रक्रिया से संबद्ध प्रबुद्ध मानस का सहयोग सराहनीय रहा ।

आपको भी खुशी होगी कि अब तक के हमारे शासन काल में एक भी संप्रदायिक दंगे या जातीय संघर्ष की घटना नही हुई है । हमनें प्रत्‍येक जिलाधिकारियों एवं पुलिस अधीक्षकों को स्‍पष्‍ट निर्देश दिया हुआ है कि समाज में शान्ति एवं सद्-भाव बरकरार करना उनकी व्‍यक्तिगत जिम्‍मेदारी है । जब हमनें बिहार में शासन की कमान संभाली तो हमनें महसूस किया कि हमारे थानों में संसाधन का नितांत अभाव है । अगर कोई नागरिक कोई शिकायत दर्ज कराने जाता था तो उससे कहा जाता था कि वह स्‍वयं कागज की व्‍यवस्‍था करे । हमारी सरकार ने थानों के रख-रखाब के लिये एक विशेष वार्षिक कोष का गठन किया ।

इन तमाम प्रयासों से हमें एक भय-मुक्‍त समाज बनाने में मदद मिली । वर्षों बाद लोग देर रात तक अपने परिवार के सदस्‍यों के साथ सड़क पर पु:न दिखने लगे । एक वक्‍त था जब समाज में भय इस कदर व्‍याप्‍त था कि पटना के रेस्‍त्ररां में बमुश्किल एक या दो ग्राहक रात्रि में देखे जाते थे । अब आलम यह है कि लोंगों को होटलों में प्रवेश के लिये कतार में लंबे समय तक इंतजार करना पड़ता है । यहॉं तक कि लोग परिवार सहित नाईट शो में भी सिनेमा हॉल में फिर से दिखने लगे हैं । मुझे यह कहने में लेशमात्र झिझक नहीं है कि यह परिवर्त्तन मूलत: अपराध पर नियंत्रण होने के कारण संभव हो पाया । इसका प्रभाव अन्‍य क्षेत्रों पर भी हुआ । मुझे आजकल अक्‍सर कहा जाता है कि पटना में एक फ्लैट की कीमत देश के अन्‍य विकसित शहरों की तुलना में अधिक है । ऐसा तब हुआ जब पिछले वर्ष की आर्थिक मंदी ने बाजार को हर जगह प्रभावित किया । हमारे शासन काल के पहले पंद्रह वर्षो में बिहार में व्‍यापार के क्षेत्र में विकास नहीं हुआ था । लोग अपनी संपत्ति को कम दामों में बेचकर राज्‍य छोड़कर अन्‍यत्र बसने लगे । बिहार में उस समय में 'डिसट्रेल सेल' के अनेक उदाहरण अभी भी मिल सकते है । आज के बदले माहौल में व्‍यापार और व्‍यवसाय जिस गति से बढ़ते दिख रहे हैं उससे मुझे विश्‍वास है कि निकट भविष्‍य में हमारी व्‍यवस्‍था खुद अपनी सचेतक व नियंत्रक की भूमिका जिम्‍मेदारी पूर्वक निवार्ह कर सकेगी ।

विगत दिनों में गया में एक जापानी पर्यटक से दुष्‍कर्म का मामला सामने आया। जिस दिन मुझे इसकी जानकारी मिली मुझे उस रात नींद नहीं आयी । मैंने पुलिस अधिकारियों को निर्देश दिया कि अपराधियों के खिलाफ सख्‍त कार्यवाही हो और इस मामले को निपटारा त्‍वरित न्‍यायालय में हो । इस मामले में आरोपियों का गिरफ्तार किया जा चुका है और न्‍यायालय में पुलिस ने आरोप-पत्र दाखिल भी कर दिया है । इस घटना में संलग्‍न सभी अपराधियों को शीघ्र सजा मिलेगी ।

यह सच है कि समाज से अपराध का खात्‍मा पूर्णत: नहीं किया जा सकता है किन्‍तु समुचित प्रशासिनक व्‍यवस्‍था एवं समयबद्ध न्‍याय के साथ उसका नियंत्रण संभव है । खास बात यह है कि जनमानस पटल पर सुरक्षा को लेकर लकीरें न दिखें । अवाम में असुरक्षा की भावना अपराधियों को ही बल देगी ।

हमारी सरकार ने अपराध के लिये समुचित सजा सुनिश्चित कर जनता का विश्‍वास जीता है । बिहार में यह अब संभव नही है कि कोई व्‍यक्ति जुर्म करके सजा से बचा रह सके ।---ऐसी हमारी दृढ़संकल्पिता है ।

उन्‍हें अब इस बात का पता है कि कोई है जो उन पर नजर बनाये हुये है ।

नीतीश

Checking crime in Bihar was a big challenge

I had made a solemn promise to the people during my election campaigns in the run-up to the 2005 Bihar Assembly polls that I would re-establish the rule of the law in the state.

That was a challenging task, to say the least. After all, I had to demystify the myth that crime could not be kept on a tight leash in the state.

But it had to be accomplished within the framework of the law. I had often come across reports from different parts of the country about alleged excesses committed by the law enforcement agencies in the name of maintaining law of order. I, therefore, had to ensure that nobody violated human rights in pursuit of the avowed objective of our government.

With that purpose in mind, I first turned my attention to the logs of cases registered under the Arms Act which were pending before various courts for long. I realised that they could be disposed of quickly because the witnesses in all those cases were primarily the policemen.

I thought if those witnesses could depose in the courts it would lead to speedy disposal of the cases. If convicted, the accused could be imprisoned up to three years under the Arms Act. Our government subsequently set up a dedicated cell at the police headquarters to facilitate that. I instructed the officials to ensure that they should not seek more than one date from the courts for deposition of those witnesses. I told them that it was for the courts to give verdict in any case but it was the bounden duty of the government to develop a system for facilitating the speedy process of justice. Many witnesses, who had shifted to Jharkhand after the creation of a new state in 2000, were also brought to Bihar to depose before the courts.

This proved very effective in bringing down the number of pending cases under the Arms Act, as scores of accused were convicted or acquitted at the end of their trials.

As the juggernaut of speedy justice rolled on, I simply forgot who were involved in those cases. It became immaterial whether the accused was known to me or not. It soon became clear to everybody that law ultimately had to take its own course. Anybody committing the crime in Bihar could not have hoped for evading the long arms of the law.

That instilled enough confidence in the common man. They realised that it was no longer possible for anybody, howsoever mighty, to go scot-free after breaking the laws of the land. Witnesses in several long-standing cases thereafter shunned fear and met the district superintendents of police on their own to say that they were ready to depose before the courts and help bring the culprits to book.

Hardly surprising then, the habitual offenders who broke the law with impunity in the past knew that our government meant business when it reiterated its commitment to rein in the crime at any cost. Those who loved to flaunt their guns through tinted windowpanes of their vehicles or others who loved to fire gunshots in the air through the shamiana of a wedding ceremony with their unlicensed guns got the message in no time as well.

I wanted to formulate an action plan to accelerate the process for speedy justice. In 2006, I convened a two-day meeting which was attended by the chief justice and other judges of the Patna High Court besides all the public prosecutors, district magistrates and superintendents of police. We decided to follow the action plan in letter and spirit. It resulted in conviction of thousands of accused in different cases through speedy trials. Many trials involving high-profile accused were even held in the jail premises on a day-to-day basis.

The sheer expediency of the whole process instilled a sense of fear in the minds of gun-toting brigade so much so that the brazen display of arms during wedding ceremonies, which was a normal feature earlier, came to a halt. All I needed was to underline the fact that our government had a zero-tolerance policy vis-à-vis crime in the state.

I would also like to mention here that not even a single incident of communal tension or caste strife took place in the state over the past four-and-a-half years. I decided to make the district magistrates and superintendents of police directly accountable for maintaining social harmony in the areas under their jurisdiction.

When I had taken over I realised that many police stations in the state did not have adequate infrastructure. They were even bereft of basic needs for effective policing. If anybody went to the police stations to lodge an FIR, he was told to bring his own paper and other stationery material.

Our government earmarked a separate annual fund to meet the demands of the police stations. These efforts quickly led to restoring the people’s faith in the system of justice. The fear had gone out of their minds. It was after many years that people could be seen moving out with their families on the streets till late night in the cities of Bihar.

It was because of the all-pervasive fear that people had earlier stopped going out with their families in the late evenings. There was a time when the best of restaurants in Patna used to have barely one or two customers at night. But now, you can see long queues of the people waiting for their turn outside many eateries in Patna.

The family audience, which had shunned watching movies long ago, also returned to the theatres even in the night shows. I have no hesitation to say that the change was the reflection of the overall improvement in the law and order scenario. The considerable decline in crime also had salubrious impact on other sectors. The contractors started taking up work on many road projects across the state. They were no longer afraid of doing work even in the remotest areas of Bihar because there was no extortionist around to demand their ‘commission’ from them.

There has also been a boom in the real estate in Bihar. I am often told that the cost of a flat in Patna at present is higher than many developed cities in the country. This has happened in spite of the last year’s economic slowdown which had depreciated property prices elsewhere.

The property prices had remained stagnant in Bihar for many years preceding my tenure. Though there are no official figures of distress sale during the previous regime, it is a fact that many people had sold off their houses and other property and migrated to other states after being disillusioned with the sorry state of affairs here.

I was very upset when I came to know about an unfortunate incident involving a Japanese tourist in Gaya recently. In fact, I could not sleep the whole night when I came to know about it. I directed the police officials to take quick action against the rape accused and put them through speedy trial. The accused in the case were arrested and charge-sheeted within a week. The culprits will be convicted soon.

It is true that crime cannot be eradicated completely from society. But it can effectively be checked through proper policing and time-bound justice. Our government has won the confidence of people by ensuring punishment for each and every crime. It is no longer possible for anybody to commit any crime and get away with it in Bihar.

They know that somebody is watching!

आपके साथ संवाद प्रेरणादायक है.......

मेरे पहले पोस्ट के एक सप्ताह में सैकड़ों रेस्पोंस मिले हैं सच कहूँ तो इनमे से कई मेरे लिए बेहद उपयोगी और प्रेरक हैं चाहे अररिया जिला के मो राशिद रजा हों या हैदराबाद के विश्वजीत या फिर अमेरिका से सीमा ..... इन सबने उन प्रमुख बिन्दुओं का बखूबी जिक्र किया है जिनकी बदौलत बिहार में बदलाव का माहौल सुगठित होता जा रहा है।

यह मेरे लिए बहुत उत्साहजनक है कि आपलोगों ने मुख्यमंत्री बालिका साइकिल योजना कि अपरिहार्यता को गंभीरता से लिया है। मैंने अपने पहले पोस्ट में इस योजना क़ी साथर्कता और प्रासंगिकता का जिक्र किया था। आपके संवाद से साफ़ है कि इस योजना में राज्य में सुदूर से शहरी इलाकों में रहने वाली बच्चियों और उनके परिवारों की महत्त्वकाँक्षा को सुदृढ़ किया है। इन बाबत आपके संवाद मेरे लिए अत्यंत प्रेरणादायक हैं। आपकी तमाम व्यस्तताओं के बावजूद बहुमूल्य रेस्पोंस भेजने के लिए मैं आपका आभारी हूँ । हर एक का जबाब दे पाना शायद मुमकिन न हो । सप्ताह भर में सैकड़ों रेस्पोंस के जरिये व्यक्त किये गए आपके विचार न केवल सराहनीय हैं बल्कि मेरे लिए बेहद अहम् हैं । इन्हें पढने के बाद मैं तठस्थ और अडिग महसूस कर रहा हूँ । इनमें बिहार को नई ऊँचाई तक ले जाने वाली लाखो प्रेरणाएं साफ़ निहित दिख रही हैं जो भविष्य में यह सुनिश्चित करेगी की राज्य में अवसरों की उपलब्धता लोगों की क्षमताओं और उम्मीदों को परिपुर्णित करे।

सरकार के प्रयासों के जरिये बिहार में बदलाव दिख रहा है .... व् इस परिवर्तन के प्रति सकारात्मकता व्याप्त है। बिहार और बिहारियों के प्रति इन सकारात्मक्ताओ की कहानीयाँ आपने गाँव , शहर एवम यहाँ तक की अमेरिका के प्रान्तों से भी सुनाई हैं । सरकार और प्रशासन के प्रयास अकादमिक , मिडिया एवम प्रबुद्ध लोगों के योगदान के अलावा जिस एक ख़ास चीज़ का महत्त्व इस माहौल को व्याप्त बनाने के प्रति रहा है , वो मेरी समझ से हम आम नागरिकों के बीच दिन-प्रतिदिन होने वाले बहुतेरे संवाद हैं । मैं इनकी महता को शायद कुछ-कुछ समझता हूँ...... यही वजह हो कि आज ब्लॉग के जरिये मैं आपसे मुखातिब हूँ ।

लोग बिहार में आये दिन बन रही नई सड़कों , अस्पतालों , इत्यादी के साथ साथ प्रशासनिक व्यवस्था में झलक रही नई सोच व् कर्मठता , एवम आवाम में झलकते विश्वास व् सौहार्द्य को बदलते बिहार का प्रारूप मानते हैं। हालाकि, साथ ही बिजली कि कमी और निजी क्षेत्र कि हिस्सेदारी को बढ़ावा देने जैसी कई चुनौतियों का जिक्र करना भी लाज़मी है। आपको ज्ञात होगा कि हमने कई विधुत परियोजनाओं के लिए पहल की है, व् इनकी स्थापना की प्रक्रिया विभिन्न चरणों पर है। विधुत उत्पादन इकाईयों से सम्बंधित प्रस्ताव तैयार करना और फिर इसके आधार पर परियोजना की स्थापना करने में काफी वक्त लगता है। जाहिर है की यह एक जटिल काम है। खासकर केंद्र से पहल कर coal linkage जैसी चीजों को सुनिश्चित कराना कई बार चुनौतीपूर्ण होता है। आपको ज्ञात होगा की वर्ष 2004-2005 में हमें विरासत में विधुत की शून्य उत्पादकता मिली थी... लेकिन हमने इसे चुनौती के बतौर स्वीकार किया और इस दिशा में लगातार काम कर रहे हैं । हम सामाजिक एवम व्यवसायिक विकास में निजी और सार्वजनिक साझेदारी की संभावनाओं पर भी लगातार काम कर रहे हैं । हमने बिहार पुल निर्माण निगम जैसे सार्वजनिक उपक्रम को पुनर्जीवित कर आज एक अग्रणी की सूचि में ला खड़ा किया है। अन्तराष्ट्रीय लेवल की कई agencies के साथ हमारी साझेदारी फलीभूत होती दिखने लगी हैं।

मैं हर्षित हूँ की उच्च शिक्षा को आपने भी एक बेहद महत्वपूर्ण विषय के रूप में देखा है। इस बावत , खासकर बिहार के होनहार विद्यार्थियों के सुझाव एवम विचार इंगित करते हैं कि वर्तमान परिपेक्ष में बिहार के लिए इस विषय पर काम करना बेहद प्रासंगिक है । बिहार सरकार ने इन चंद वर्षों में उच्च शिक्षा के विकल्पों को बढ़ाने के लिए BIT Meshra की बिहार शाखा , चाणक्य law university , चन्द्रगुप्त मैनेजमेंट इंस्टिट्यूट और आर्यभट knowledge university जैसी इकाईयों की स्थापना कराई है । राज्य सरकार IIT patna और नालंदा अन्तराष्ट्रीय विश्वविद्यालय की स्थापना को लेकर सारे जरुरी प्रावधानों को सुनिश्चित कर चुकी है। आने वाले समय में आप ऐसी कई योजनाओं को फलीभूत होते देखेंगे ।

अंत में , ब्लॉग पर लिखने के मेरे इस नए प्रयास का आपने जिस गर्मजोशी से स्वागत किया है उससे मैं पूर्णतया आश्वस्त हूँ कि मेरी भविष्य कि सोच, नीतियों और कार्यप्रारुपों को निश्चित दिशा देने में सक्षमता आएगी। एक ब्लॉगर के रूप में मेरा स्वागत करने के लिए कोटि कोटि धन्यवाद । मैं इन्टरनेट की पीढ़ी के वन्धुत्व को सादर स्वीकार करता हूँ।

आने वाले समय में मैं अपने अनेक विचार आपसे साझा करता रहूंगा । आपके रेस्पोंस जानने के बाद मैं समझता हूँ कि आप भी बिहार में क़ानून व्यवस्था और जिम्मेदार प्रशासन को हमारी सरकार की ख़ास उपलब्धियों की सूचीं में देखते हैं। मेरे पहले ही पोस्ट पर आपके इतने सारे विचार मुझे इन्हें प्राथमिकता में रखने को प्रेरित कर रहे हैं । मेरी कोशिश है की अगले पोस्ट में मैं इन पर चर्चा करूँ ।

आपके विचारों का इंतज़ार रहेगा ।

हार्दिक साधुवाद सहित ,

नीतीश

This Novel Blog Experience is Enriching

The whole of last week I have been going through the hundreds of responses that have been coming by to my first post. To be honest, for someone like me, they are hugely enriching and insightful. Even as I have grappled for ways to be able to attend to as many of the responses individually, I continue being swamped by a deep sense of beholdedness by the sheer interest that people as distantly located as Md Rashid Reza in Araria district to Viswajeet in Hyderabad to Seema in the United States have shown to the very cause of development of the state of Bihar.

I feel truly humbled that you have so overwhelmingly seen genuine merit in the Mukhya Mantri Balika Cycle Yojana. I shared in my first post the earnestness with which I had approached this Scheme. Your responses clearly prove that in doing so I may have touched the aspirations of young girls and their families in far-flung areas in the state. It naturally gives me a renewed sense of strength.

I use this space to extend my sincere gratefulness to all those who have spared time to respond. You would surely agree that it is humanly impossible to attend to each one of the responses individually. The sheer expanse and diversity of the issues raised across the over six hundred responses so far is a case in point. I feel greatly emboldened though that millions of true aspirations are there to provide the strength of conviction needed to steer Bihar onto a roadmap where opportunities match people’s expectations and capacities.

It is immensely touching to hear from scores of you real life and anecdotal incidences of how the general perception of people towards Bihar and its natives is beginning to show positively healthy shifts across populations. Surely, the goodwill is spreading ….partly by way of the silent works of the government and administration, the radars and scanners of the academia, media and various professional pursuits, but mainly through the many public and private discourses that we as lay citizens engage in on a day-to-day basis. I value the latter immensely, …..possibly why I have ventured to be on such an interactive media as a blogspace.

Surely, this fair sense of goodwill…reverberating alike in places as distant as Bangalore, Noida /NCR and the US…is not for nothing. People often talk of the new roads in Bihar, the refurbished district hospitals and PHCs, a sense of purpose evident in the structures of governance, the general sense of reassurance and ease with which people in the state are going about their daily lives, et al as evidence of a changing Bihar. At the same time, many point to issues like the shortfall in electricity generation, private sector participation, etc. as challenges that need to be addressed. I could agree no more. The two however are distantly different paradigms. While one term of a fairly inclined provincial government may be just about enough to bring about better road connectivity, the exigencies of establishing sustainable sources of energy and entrepreneurship demand far greater spadeworks.

You would be aware that many of the power projects that we initiated in the state are at various stages in the process of establishment and commissioning. From estimation of need to drawing up of detailed proposals to securing resources to finally commissioning power units……it is a tediously extended process. Interspersed are issues like ensuring coal linkages and others that need to be negotiated with the Centre. And, having inherited a state with zero electricity production in 2004-05, we are doing it most assertively. We also continue to explore possibilities of Public Private Partnerships across proposals and interests evidenced by genuine groups in both social and business sectors, even as we have tried to ensure thorough revival of public entities like the Bihar Pul Nirman Nigam into thriving enterprises first.

I am particularly also pleased that the issue of quality higher education is dear to so many of you. Especially when it comes from the fraternity of young aspiring students from Bihar, it carries an unmistakable sense of genuineness. You would have noted the strides the present government has made by way of provisioning for institutions of higher education and learning in the state such as the Bihar chapter of the famous BIT, Meshra, the Chanakya Law University, the Chandragupta Management Institute and the Aryabhatta Knowledge University. The state has proactively facilitated modalities for the setting up of an IIT at Patna and is actively seeking formalisation of the Nalanda International University. We are also looking forward to setting up a new agriculture university in the coming days.

I am beginning to reckon that while the beauty of such an interactive media lies in its universal appeal and accessibility, it draws its core strength from its inclusiveness. How else could this jet-paced fraternity of netizens accept someone like me with such warmth and vibrancy! I have lost count of the number of felicitations welcoming me to be a blogger. Thank you. And, notwithstanding its compatibility to the English language, I would also use the space to write and respond in Hindi.

Moving ahead, I will have opportunities to share several of my thoughts in the times to come. The two issues of law and order and responsive governance in Bihar have probably been the most talked about achievements of this regime. Your responses to the first post, too, prod me to take these up on priority. I will therefore, in this post, try to demystify some of the key strands of these.

I look forward to your views.

Thank you and sincerely,

Nitish

Mukhyamantri Balika Cycle Yojna

Among several welfare initiatives taken by our government over the past four years, the ‘Mukhyamantri Balika Cycle Yojna’ is very close to my heart. It has changed the face of Bihar with lakhs of schoolgirls riding bicycles to their schools every day with a purpose.

Prior to the launch of this project more than three years ago it was rare to find a schoolgirl riding a bicycle even on the streets of Patna. But now, you can watch scores of confident-looking schoolgirls pedalling away with gusto everywhere – from the narrow lanes of a remote village to the bustling roads of the cities across the state.

Under this scheme, a schoolgirl gets a cheque of Rs 2,000 upon passing class VIII to buy a bicycle so that she can go to school every day.

It would be no exaggeration to say that the scheme has been an unqualified success. It has given me a lot of satisfaction since it has helped check the dropout rate of schoolgirls to a great extent across the state.

Take a look at the figures of the past three financial years to measure the success of this scheme. In 2007-08, our government spent Rs 32.60 crore to enable 1.63 lakh schoolgirls to buy bicycles; in 2008-09, we allocated Rs 54.43 crore towards this project facilitating purchase of the same by 2.72 lakh schoolgirls and in the year 2009-10, the number of beneficiaries rose to 4.36 lakh who bought bicycles worth Rs 87.33crore. To sum up, our government spent Rs 174.36 crore in the past three years to make 8.71 lakh schoolgirls proud owners of bicycles which they are all using to educate themselves now.

These are not mere statistics. This is, in fact, an affirmation of the fact that a small initiative can really go a long way in bringing about a big change. In Bihar, bicycles have now become a veritable instrument for social change which can be felt in any part of the state.

The dropout rate among the schoolgirls has been very high in Bihar over the years. The girls, particularly those from rural areas, often discontinue their studies beyond the primary or middle schools. Most of them are often married at an early age, which leave them with fewer opportunities to contribute their mite towards economic development of society.

After taking the reins of the state, I kept thinking of various ways to reduce the dropout rate of students in general and the schoolgirls in particular. It was in 2006 that I decided to give away bicycles to all the schoolgirls of classes VIII, IX and X studying in government schools. I was sure that this incentive would go a long way not only in arresting the dropout rate of schoolgirls in the high schools but also be a significant step towards woman empowerment.

When our government had taken over, the number of dropouts in the schools in the state was a staggering 25 lakh. Today, it has come down to around 10 lakh only. I have no hesitation to say that this scheme has also played a significant part in bringing about this positive change.

Many people have called it a ‘revolutionary’ concept and asked me when did I first think of this project? To tell you the truth, I got the idea while I was at an official programme organised by the Patna district administration in 2006. On that occasion, I had distributed a few bicycles among children from the underprivileged sections of society. When I handed over the keys to them, I could see happiness all over their faces.

The memories of those happy faces of poor children remained with me long after the ceremony was over. Soon, I held a meeting with senior officials of the Human Resource department asking them to work out a plan for distribution of free bicycles among all high school girls.

The department promptly invited tenders from the companies and the lowest quoted price was Rs 1,840 for each bicycle.

The officials of the department advocated for bulk purchase of bicycles and their distribution through official machinery. They also suggested that each bicycle bear the insignia of the Bihar government.

But I did not approve of the ideas. I thought that purchase of bicycles through tenders might give rise to corruption in future. Instead, I was in favour of handing over money through cheques directly to the beneficiaries. I thought it would not only simplify the entire process but also make the scheme transparent.

I, therefore, asked the then secretary of the Human Resource department to add Rs 160 to the lowest quoted price for each bicycle and launch the project straightaway.

Looking back, I derive a lot of satisfaction from the success of this project. It has brought about a real transformation in the field of girls’ education in Bihar. Now, our government has extended this scheme for schoolboys as well. Wherever I travelled in the state over the past three years, I used to find girls bubbling with enthusiasm but the boys looked downcast because they were not getting bicycles. But now, they have no reasons to complain.

A remarkable aspect of this project is that this has benefited students from all sections of society. It does not exclude anybody on the basis of caste, creed or economic background. The only eligibility criterion is that the beneficiary should be studying in Class VIII and above in a government-run school.

I have always believed that any society cannot progress unless its women progress -- and the women in any society cannot progress unless they are educated. This scheme is a small step in that direction.

This project personifies the winds of change blowing across the state today. Its long-term impact will be felt in a few years from now. But I have no hesitation to say that this has already helped Bihar emerge as a vibrant state which truly believes in empowering its women through various ways. Educating girls is one of them.