President Pranab Mukherjee called the eastern region of the country, of which Bihar and Jharkhand form a part, a victim of historical burden which came first in the form of permanent settlement and then in the form of freight equalisation policy.
“Bihar and Jharkhand today stand at the crossroads and one wonders which path they will choose to meet the aspirations of their people,” he said while inaugurating the silver jubilee function of Asian Development Research Institute and its international conference on “Bihar and Jharkhand: Shared History to Shared Vision” here on Friday.
He advised the two neighbouring States for investment in education sector beyond what is done in normal circumstances as part of their development strategy. The President said, “Aspirations of the people of Bihar and Jharkhand are much higher than before as political mobilisation has brought the new section of people into power who were politically marginalized till recently.” He said the eastern region States of West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand should consider Bangladesh as an example of development.
The President said the role of Governments is crucial for socio-economic transformation but their efforts could be bolstered by an initiative from the civil society. Mukherjee praised Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and said Bihar brought tremendous changes in administration and taking State on the path of development.
Mukherjee called Bihar a land of inspiration and a confluence of different cultures. He said Bihar has been home to Gautam Buddha and lord Mahavira who taught people how to attain salvation. He cited Nalanda and Vikramshila as not only two centres of learning but also as a confluence of cultures and civilizations where students from across the world came to study.
In a lighter vein the President, while turning to Deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav who sat on the dais, he recalled how lalu Prasad, then CM of Bihar in nineties had visited his office of Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission to discuss eighth five year plan along with his two kids Tejashwi and Tej Pratap and how the young children had to be engaged with a couple of chocolate bars and the two leaders discussed serious matters.
Governor Ramnath Kovind said the both Bihar and Jharkhand face enormous challenges and to meet them the two States need social research leveraging local and international expertise. Former MP N K Singh who presided over the inaugural function reminded the President of his address to the joint session of the parliament in which he admitted that the eastern region of the country has been low on development and that the Government was committed to take conscious efforts towards their development. He said the President should impress the Centre to fulfill the commitment.
ADRI member-secretary Shaibal Gupta welcomed the dignitaries and lord Meghnad Desai proposed vote of thanks. Those present on the dais included CM Nitish Kumar, Deputy CM Yadav, Edcuation Minsiter Ashok Chaudhary and others. The conference is dedicated to the memory of prominent social researcher Arvind Narain Das.