Motihari: Bihar will soon have another airport as part of a major drive to boost infrastructure and create jobs. Deputy chief minister Samrat Chaudhary announced that tenders for the construction of airports in Raxaul and Muzaffarpur will be issued this month, while work on a new airport in Motihari will also begin soon. He was speaking at the inauguration of a two-day Krishi Mela cum Samman Samaroh at the Mahatma Gandhi Auditorium.
Chaudhary said that Bihar was moving rapidly towards development after decades of struggle with basic facilities like electricity, roads and drinking water. He stressed that the government’s focus was now on building large factories and industries, which would open up new opportunities for local people. The state has set a target of providing jobs and employment to one crore youth in the next five years.
Alongside new infrastructure, the deputy CM highlighted several welfare measures. On the demand of women, the social security pension has been increased from Rs 400 to Rs 1,100. Women from more than 2.7 crore families will be given Rs 2 lakh each to support self-employment, and Rs 10,000 will be deposited in their accounts this month. He said the Jeevika programme, which already has over 1.4 crore women engaged in businesses worth Rs 56,000 crore, would be further strengthened. To support them, the government will deposit Rs 1,000 crore in banks so that loans can be taken at only 7% interest.
Chaudhary also spoke about the state’s efforts to promote renewable energy. Under the PM Suryaghar scheme, 1.1 kilowatt solar systems will be installed on households across Bihar within three years. The central government will pay Rs 33,000 per unit, with the rest covered by the state. In addition, the government will continue to provide a subsidy of 125 units of electricity to consumers.
He added that the government was ready to provide land at a token rate of one rupee to big factories, on the condition that they employ people from Bihar. “Earlier we used to talk only about small and cottage industries,” he said. “Now, the state is taking initiatives to set up big industries and generate large-scale employment.”
