Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced a bonanza in Union Budget 2024 to Bihar on Tuesday. The Centre government proposed Rs 26,000 crore budget for several road development projects in the state amid recent bridge collapse incidents.
To date, 15 bridge collapse incidents have taken place in the state in the last four weeks after the bridge situated on the Parman River at Amhara village in the Araria district of Bihar was swept away due to heavy water.
FM Sitharaman said the government "will formulate plan Purvodaya for all round development of Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. "On the Amritsar-Kolkata industrial corridor we will support the development of an industrial nod at Gaya in Bihar. It will catalyse the development of the easter region. We will also support the development of road connectivity projects- Patna -Purnea expressway, Buxar- Bhagalpur highway, Bodhgaya- Rajgir-Vaishali- Darbhanga and an additional two-lane bridge over river Ganga in Buxar for Rs 26,000 crores," Sitharaman said while presenting Budget 2024 in the Parliament.
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The NDA-led government also planned to develop airports, medical colleges, and sports infrastructure in Bihar. Nitish Kumar, a member of the NDA, demanded 'special category status' for the state before the presentation of the Union Budget. Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party also demanded the same in the all-party meeting ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament.