Bihar CM Nitish Kumar inaugurates Bihar Diwas and Patna Book Festival at Gandhi Maidan
Patna: Chief Minister Nitish Kumar inaugurated Bihar Diwas 2025 celebrations at the historic Gandhi Maidan by lighting a lamp and flying a balloon. The three-day event, running from Mar 22 to 24, marks the 113th Foundation Day of Bihar with the theme “Unnat Bihar, Vikasit Bihar”. During the ceremony, Additional Chief Secretary of the Education Department, S. Siddharth, welcomed the Chief Minister by presenting him with a book.
Before the formal inauguration, the Chief Minister visited exhibitions showcasing the development works of various departments. He toured stalls set up by the Education Department, Bihar State Disaster Management Authority, Rural Development Department (Jeevika), Art, Culture and Youth Department, Sports Department, and others. He also released two booklets — “Disaster Risk Reduction Roadmap of Bihar” and “Mukhyamantri Vidyalaya Suraksha Karyakram” (Class 9-12), published by the Bihar State Disaster Management Authority.
While interacting with Jeevika members at the Rural Development Department’s exhibition, the Chief Minister highlighted that the number of self-help groups in Bihar was initially low. He recalled taking a loan from the World Bank in 2006 to expand the initiative, which was named “Jeevika”. Inspired by this, the then Central Government named its scheme “Ajeevika”. Encouraging the Jeevika sisters, he assured them of the government’s continued support in meeting their needs.
Following the Bihar Diwas inauguration, the Chief Minister inaugurated the Patna Book Festival at Gandhi Maidan by cutting the ribbon. He later visited stalls set up by various publications. The organizing committee honored him by presenting a book.
The event was attended by Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, Union Minister for Panchayati Raj, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairy Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lallan Singh, Bihar Assembly Speaker Nandkishore Yadav, Water Resources and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Energy Minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Education Minister Sunil Kumar, Information and Public Relations Minister Maheshwar Hazari, Cooperation Minister Prem Kumar, MP Sanjay Kumar Jha, Vice President of Bihar State Disaster Management Authority Uday Kant Mishra, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Deepak Kumar, Chief Secretary Amrit Lal Meena, DGP Vinay Kumar, Secretary of Rural Development Department Lokesh Kumar Singh, Secretary to the Chief Minister Kumar Ravi, Secretary of Education Department Ajay Yadav, Special Officer to the Chief Minister Gopal Singh, Patna Division Commissioner Mayank Barbade, District Magistrate Chandrashekhar Singh, SSP Avkash Kumar, and other senior officials. A large number of common people also participated in the celebrations.
