Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the “poor situation” of education during the former rule of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in Bihar as a major reason for a major migration from the state and appreciated the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to improve the situation and lead the state on the path of progress.
Assembly elections are due in Bihar this year.
Modi also indirectly targeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the inauguration program of young -centered education and skill development initiatives including several projects for Bihar, which Congress members often call ‘Jananayak’. The term Jannayak has been used for OBC (Other Backward Classes) leader and former Bihar Chief Minister Karpoori Thakur.
Without naming Gandhi, Modi said that the people of Bihar should be alert to the efforts of “stealing” the honor related to Thakur by some people. He said that Thakur was not given the title of Jannayak by ‘Social Media Troll’ but it is a symbol of people’s love for him.
The late OBC leader was awarded the Bharat Ratna last year by the Modi -led central government.
Praising Chief Minister Kumar, Modi said that the Bihar government has taken new resolutions for the development of the state and has decided to double the number of people getting employment in the next five years as compared to the last 20 years.
Amidst the emphasis of the issue of migration during the ongoing assembly election campaign in the state, the Prime Minister said that the purpose of this scheme is to ensure that the youth of Bihar get employment in the state itself. Taking a dig at the RJD government, he said that the current generation of youth probably would not be aware of how much the education system was ruined 20-25 years ago.
Modi said that schools did not open and very few recruitments were made and students were forced to leave the state and go to other cities. He said that the real start of migration was from here. He said that it is very difficult to re -erect the tree whose roots are rotting and this was the situation of Bihar during the RJD rule. He appreciated the NDA government for bringing changes in the state.
The Prime Minister said that India’s Industrial Training Institute (ITI) is not only an important center for industrial education but also works as a workshops for ‘self -reliant India’. He said that his government has opened 5,000 ITIs in the last decade while 10,000 ITIs were opened by 2014.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday unveiled various young-centered initiatives worth more than Rs 62,000 crore, laying special emphasis on Bihar.
Modi launched a centrally sponsored scheme PM-Setu (through Prime Minister Skill Development and Employment Change Advanced ITI) with an investment of Rs 60,000 crore.
The scheme envisages upgrading 1,000 government industrial training institutes (ITIs) in the ‘Hub-S-Spoke’ model which includes 200 ‘Hub’ ITIs and 800 ‘Spokes’ ITIs.
The ‘Hub and Spoke’ model is a distribution system that acts like a bicycle wheel that consists of a ‘hub’ (center) that connects all ‘spokes’ (small, supporting places). Each ‘hub’ will be associated with an average four ‘spokes’ which will create packages equipped with advanced infrastructure, modern enterprises, digital educational systems and incubation facilities.
Modi also launched Bihar’s revised ‘Mukhyamantri Self Help Allowance Scheme’ under which about five lakh graduates will get a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000-1,000 for two years and free skill training will also be provided. He also introduced the newly prepared ‘Bihar Student Credit Card’ scheme under which interest free education loan of up to four lakh rupees will be provided.
The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur Kaushal University, which aims to provide industry-oriented courses and vocational education to prepare a global competitive workforce.
