Jharkhand’s hopes of getting Special Status appeared to have been dashed on Thursday, after Union Planning Minister Rajeev Shukla reiterated in Rajya Sabha that “Jharkhand, Odisha and Rajasthan do not qualify based on an integrated consideration of the existing criteria.”
Shukla, who had made similar statement in April, invited the wrath of the Jharkhand political fraternity. leaders cutting across party lines flayed the Union Government’s decision and said it was politically-motivated.
Interestingly, in his written reply, Shukla stated that Bihar’s request has been kept under consideration after one Inter-Ministerial Group submitted its report. A high-level committee headed by RBI Governor designate Raghuram Rajan is yet to submit its report redefining criteria for a State’s backwardness.
Chief Minister Hemant Soren told The Pioneer, “The economic condition of Jharkhand is well known to the Centre. The State fulfils parameters to get special status.” The Chief Minister said if the Centre thought that Jharkhand could prosper on its own, “we have to change the formula through which the State gets funds from the Centre and utilises its resources.”
Former Chief Minister Arjun Munda, who had raised the demand for Special Category State status for Jharkhand for the first time at a meeting of the National Development Council (NDC) in 2011 and again in 2012, said the Centre’s stand was completely unfair and appeared to be politically-motivated.
Another sharp reaction came from senior BJP leader Saryu Roy, who pointed out that Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Bengal shared a common legacy since the British period. "I feel MPs and CMs of these States should jointly raise their voice against the decision," Roy said.