India’s eastern states engines of growth, just as eastern nations are rising: PM

New Delhi: India’s eastern states are gaining momentum, and will be engines of growth for the country, just like eastern nations are rising globally, prime minister Narendra Modi said on Friday at a rally in poll-bound Bihar’s Motihari, where he inaugurated new development projects worth over ₹7,000 crore.

He inaugurated projects in the rail, road, rural development, fisheries, electronics and information technology sectors, the government said in a statement.

Speaking in Bihar ahead of the state’s assembly elections likely in October-November, Modi said that over the past decade, the Centre has allocated nearly ₹9 trillion for the state’s development, compared with ₹2 trillion in the preceding decade.

Modi also said over the past 11 years, more than 40 million houses have been built under the PM Awas Yojana across the country, with nearly 60,00,000 constructed in Bihar alone.

India’s eastern states, including Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal, are among the poorest in the country.

Modi also spoke about benefits received by women and farmers in Bihar under central schemes.

He said the Centre’s Jan Dhan Yojana for financial inclusion has benefited women, with about 35 million women in the state opening new bank accounts till date.

In the past one-and-a-half months alone, over 24,000 self-help groups in the state have received more than ₹1,000 crore in assistance, through the Jan Dhan accounts.

Over 20,00,000 women in Bihar have become “Lakhpati didis”—women with a net worth of over ₹1 lakh due to the Centre’s push for financial inclusion.

The government’s efforts to promote makhanas (fox nuts) had pushed global prices up, Modi said, adding that a Makhana Board has been formed to support the sector.

Under the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, approximately ₹3.5 trillion has been disbursed to farmers across the country, andthat in Motihari alone, over 500,000 farmers have received more than ₹1,500 crore through this scheme.

Modi also said the Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana, recently approved by the Union cabinet, will identify, prioritise, and provide financial benefits to farmers in 100 districts that agriculturally-rich in potential but lagging in productivity and farmer income.

Rail projects inaugurated by Modi on Friday included the development of infrastructure for maintenance of Vande Bharat trains at Patliputra,and automatic signalling on Bhatni-Chhapra Gramin rail line (114 km) to enable streamlined train operations.

He also inaugurated a new Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) facility at Darbhanga and an Incubation Facility of STPI at Patna for promoting the information technology (IT) industry and startups.

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