RJD Damaged Bihar Education Sector: Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday blamed the RJD rule for ruining Bihar’s education system and called it a major reason for the large-scale migration from the state. Speaking after launching Rs 62,000 crores youth education and skilling initiatives, including several projects for the poll-bound Bihar, Mr Modi lauded the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government for improving the situation and setting the state on a path to progress. He also launched Bihar's revamped “Mukhyamantri Nishchay Svyam Sahayata Bhatta Yojana”.

Addressing the Kaushal Deekshant Samaroh at Vigyan Bhawan in the national capital, Mr Modi took a veiled swipe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is often lauded by his party members as "Jan Nayak", an honorific associated with respected OBC leader and former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur. He said: “The people of Bihar should be vigilant to attempts by some to ‘steal’ the honour long associated with Karpoori Thakur. The OBC leader was not bestowed the title of Jan Nayak by social media trolls, but it is a reflection of people's love for him.”

Praising the Bihar chief minister, the Prime Minister said that the Bihar government has taken new resolutions for the state's development and has decided to double the number of people getting employment in the next five years as compared to the last 20 years. “The idea is to ensure that youngsters of Bihar are employed within the state,” he said.

Mr Modi stated that reviving a tree whose roots have been infested is a formidable feat and likened the condition of Bihar under the Opposition's misgovernance to such a tree. He noted that fortunately, the people of Bihar entrusted Mr Kumar with the responsibility of governance and the entire team of the coalition government worked collectively to restore the derailed systems.

Noting that thousands of youth from Bihar participated in the programme, the Prime Minister asserted that this generation may not fully grasp how the education system in Bihar was devastated two to two-and-a-half decades ago. He emphasised that every parent wishes for their child to study and progress locally. However, due to compulsions, lakhs of children had to leave Bihar and migrate to places like Banaras, Delhi and Mumbai.

Targeting the previous RJD governments, Mr Modi said students were forced to leave the state for other cities as the schools would not open and few recruitments were made. This was the real beginning of migration, he said, adding, "It is rather difficult to restore a tree whose roots are rotting and this was the state of Bihar during the RJD rule."

The Prime Minister lauded the NDA government in the state for its work to effect a turnaround. "India is among the world's youngest nations and Bihar is one of the states with the highest proportion of youth. Compared to the Opposition government in the past, Bihar's education budget has increased manifold. Today, nearly every village and hamlet in Bihar has a school, and the number of engineering and medical colleges has also grown significantly,” he said.

The Prime Minister also pointed out that there was a time when Bihar lacked international-level sports infrastructure, but today, national and international sports events are being held in the state.

In his address, the Prime Minister called India's ITIs not only an important centre for industrial education but also workshops for "Atmanirbhar Bharat".

“The government is focused on both increasing the number of ITIs and continuously upgrading them. Until 2014, there were only 10,000 ITIs in the country, but in the past decade, nearly 5,000 new ITIs have been established. The ITI network is being prepared to meet current industry skill requirements and anticipate future demands over the next ten years," Mr Modi said.

During the event, Mr Modi launched PM-SETU (Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs), a Centrally sponsored scheme with an investment of ₹60,000 crores. It envisages the upgrading of 1,000 government ITIs in a hub-and-spoke model comprising 200 hub ITIs and 800 spoke ITIs.

Mr Modi also launched Bihar's revamped Mukhyamantri Nishchay Svyam Sahayata Bhatta Yojana, under which nearly five lakh graduates will receive a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000 each for two years, along with free skill training. He launched the redesigned Bihar Student Credit Card Scheme, which will provide interest-free education loans of up to Rs 4 lakhs, significantly easing the financial burden of higher education.

The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur Skill University, which has been envisioned to impart industry-oriented courses and vocational education to create a globally competitive workforce.

“Bharat Ratna Karpoori Thakur Ji devoted his entire life to social service and the advancement of education... The skill university being established in his name will serve as a powerful means to carry forward that vision,” Mr Modi said.

The Prime Minister dedicated to the nation the Bihta campus of NIT-Patna. With the capacity to host 6,500 students, the campus houses advanced facilities, including a 5G use case lab, a regional academic centre for space established in collaboration with Isro and an innovation and incubation centre that has already supported nine start-ups.

Mr Modi also distributed appointment letters to more than 4,000 newly recruited candidates in the Bihar government and released Rs 450 crores in scholarships to 25-lakh students of classes 9 and 10 under the Mukhyamantri Balak/Balika Scholarship Scheme.