Showing posts with label Muzaffarpur. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Muzaffarpur. Show all posts
Friday 29 July 2011
4,311 cases pending in SC/ST police stations in Bihar
Even as the Nitish Kumar government has laid thrust on justice for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, cases relating to atrocities on SC/ST are increasing and a good number of them are pending in police stations. "The cases are piling up because of the slow pace of their disposal,'' officials claim. According to official records available at the state police headquarters here, 4311 cases lodged under SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989 are still pending with different SC/ST police stations up to May this year. The then National SC/ST Commission chairman Buta Singh, during his visit to Bihar on April 6, 2010, had expressed serious concern over the growing number of cases of atrocities, noting that hardly two per cent of them reach logical conclusion. While the number of cases of atrocities and repression were reported to be 3,723 in 2008, it rose to 5,129 in 2009 but then declined to 3,551 in 2010. State Additional Director-General of Police (Crime Investigation Department) A S Nimbran said there are seven to eight such districts where 50 per cent of cases of atrocities are pending and these are normally the districts where very less number of cases are registered every year. Nimbran confided that there are 200 cases of atrocities and repression being registered in Bihar every month. There are 239, 196, 186, 180, 167, 141 and 121 cases pending in the districts of Muzaffarpur, Saran, Begusarai, Motihari, Gaya, Patna and Gopalganj districts, respectively, he said.
Thursday 3 December 2009
Bihar government may be hard put to explain starvation deaths
The Bihar government is likely to face trouble over a lawsuit alleging at least 100 people have died of hunger in the state in the last three years, as the Patna High Court has directed the petitioner to take it up with the state human rights commission.
Social activist Ramashray Singh, who had filed the public interest litigation (PIL), said he would approach the commission this week. Officials say the state government may not be in a position to answer all the questions asked by the commission.
An official appointed by the Supreme Court had said in October that at least 100 people have died of hunger in the past three years in Bihar. But the state government dismissed the claim.
"It is a hard fact that 100 people died of hunger in Bihar in the last three years due to the failure of food- and work-related government schemes," said Rupesh, state adviser to the commissioner of the Supreme Court to monitor the implementation of food-related schemes of the Bihar government.
Rupesh said he had submitted a report on hunger deaths in Bihar to the state government in August and another in October. The reports were also sent to the commissioner of Supreme Court N.C. Saxena.
Rupesh said the reports not only confirm the deaths due to hunger but "reveal the pathetic situation regarding implementation of food and social security schemes in Bihar".
These schemes include the Integrated Child Development Scheme, the Midday Meal Scheme, the public distribution system, the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the National Maternity Benefit Scheme, the National Social Assistance Programme, the National Family Benefit Scheme and the Annapurna Yojana.
"Apart from major leakages and corruption, the coverage of government food schemes is so meagre that they leave huge holes in the social security net through which large numbers of most destitute women and men, girls and boys slip into starvation and hunger," said Rupesh.
The reports warned that the situation can worsen "if all possible action is not taken before it becomes uncontrollable".
Bihar has been hit very badly by drought and flood. As many as 26 districts are drought-affected. Nearly 40 percent of Bihar's 83 million people live below the poverty line, the highest in India, according to a World Bank report.
Rupesh said researchers led by him visited Begusarai, Muzaffarpur, Gaya, Jehanabad, Nalanda and Patna between June and August. These are the districts where starvation deaths have been reported by the media in the last two-three years.
Rupesh said that in Ratubigha village in Jehanabad district and Jhamawara village in Nalanda district, the block development officer (BDO) did not feel it necessary to send the body for postmortem or get a medical report after alleged starvation death.
In Tetua Tola Kharuna village in Gaya district, Murti Devi in her late 40s died Oct 10. Although the local administration denied that she died of hunger, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has ordered a probe.
In Ratubigha village in Jehanabad district, about 50 km from here, three starvation deaths took place over four days in August, Rupesh said.
Ajay Dome, the son of one of the victims, Chalitar, claimed that his father went without food for eight days before he died. Rupesh's report points out that Ajay and his wife Renu Kumari were not on the list of people below the poverty line, so they did not get subsidised food. Chalitar' unemployed son said the family was fighting for survival.link
Social activist Ramashray Singh, who had filed the public interest litigation (PIL), said he would approach the commission this week. Officials say the state government may not be in a position to answer all the questions asked by the commission.
An official appointed by the Supreme Court had said in October that at least 100 people have died of hunger in the past three years in Bihar. But the state government dismissed the claim.
"It is a hard fact that 100 people died of hunger in Bihar in the last three years due to the failure of food- and work-related government schemes," said Rupesh, state adviser to the commissioner of the Supreme Court to monitor the implementation of food-related schemes of the Bihar government.
Rupesh said he had submitted a report on hunger deaths in Bihar to the state government in August and another in October. The reports were also sent to the commissioner of Supreme Court N.C. Saxena.
Rupesh said the reports not only confirm the deaths due to hunger but "reveal the pathetic situation regarding implementation of food and social security schemes in Bihar".
These schemes include the Integrated Child Development Scheme, the Midday Meal Scheme, the public distribution system, the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the National Maternity Benefit Scheme, the National Social Assistance Programme, the National Family Benefit Scheme and the Annapurna Yojana.
"Apart from major leakages and corruption, the coverage of government food schemes is so meagre that they leave huge holes in the social security net through which large numbers of most destitute women and men, girls and boys slip into starvation and hunger," said Rupesh.
The reports warned that the situation can worsen "if all possible action is not taken before it becomes uncontrollable".
Bihar has been hit very badly by drought and flood. As many as 26 districts are drought-affected. Nearly 40 percent of Bihar's 83 million people live below the poverty line, the highest in India, according to a World Bank report.
Rupesh said researchers led by him visited Begusarai, Muzaffarpur, Gaya, Jehanabad, Nalanda and Patna between June and August. These are the districts where starvation deaths have been reported by the media in the last two-three years.
Rupesh said that in Ratubigha village in Jehanabad district and Jhamawara village in Nalanda district, the block development officer (BDO) did not feel it necessary to send the body for postmortem or get a medical report after alleged starvation death.
In Tetua Tola Kharuna village in Gaya district, Murti Devi in her late 40s died Oct 10. Although the local administration denied that she died of hunger, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has ordered a probe.
In Ratubigha village in Jehanabad district, about 50 km from here, three starvation deaths took place over four days in August, Rupesh said.
Ajay Dome, the son of one of the victims, Chalitar, claimed that his father went without food for eight days before he died. Rupesh's report points out that Ajay and his wife Renu Kumari were not on the list of people below the poverty line, so they did not get subsidised food. Chalitar' unemployed son said the family was fighting for survival.link
Sunday 11 October 2009
First Children's Film Festival in Patna
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday inaugurated children's film festival at Mona Theater in Patna organized by the state Information and Public Relations department in coordination with the Children's Film Society of India.
The festival that will run until November 14 would feature a host of nationally and internationally acclaimed film for the younger audience and would be replayed in Gaya, Muzaffarpur, and Bhagalpur later next month.
Kumar, in the presence of hundreds of children, wished them success in future and urged them to grow up to be good citizens and contribute towards a better, developed Bihar.
Prior to the screening of the first movie, children associated with 'Kilkari' presented a short play 'Sheikh Chilli' that left the audience laughing aloud.
The Chief Minister announced a grant of Rs. 5 lakh for developing 'Kilkari' and suggested an annual award event for its young artists.
Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, in his address, lamented the decline – both in quantity and quality – in children's films saying the proliferation of television had resulted in the loss of interest in films.
"There used to be a certain pleasure in going to films with friends and family members and this film festival aims to revive that tradition," Modi said.
Information and Public Relations Minister Ramnath Thakur, department director Rajesh Bhushan and a number of senior bureaucrats were present on the occasion.link
The festival that will run until November 14 would feature a host of nationally and internationally acclaimed film for the younger audience and would be replayed in Gaya, Muzaffarpur, and Bhagalpur later next month.
Kumar, in the presence of hundreds of children, wished them success in future and urged them to grow up to be good citizens and contribute towards a better, developed Bihar.
Prior to the screening of the first movie, children associated with 'Kilkari' presented a short play 'Sheikh Chilli' that left the audience laughing aloud.
The Chief Minister announced a grant of Rs. 5 lakh for developing 'Kilkari' and suggested an annual award event for its young artists.
Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, in his address, lamented the decline – both in quantity and quality – in children's films saying the proliferation of television had resulted in the loss of interest in films.
"There used to be a certain pleasure in going to films with friends and family members and this film festival aims to revive that tradition," Modi said.
Information and Public Relations Minister Ramnath Thakur, department director Rajesh Bhushan and a number of senior bureaucrats were present on the occasion.link
Wednesday 30 September 2009
Not any women special police station in Bihar
Women in Bihar still fear lodging a case with a male-dominated police station. To date there is no exclusive police station for women in Bihar where they can lodge their complaints.
Out of the 881 police stations in Bihar, there is not a single separate police station for women. CM Nitish Kumar had initiated a number of measures to ensure women's empowerment, the first being reservation of 50 per cent posts for them in the Panchayati Raj institutions and local bodies.
In a RTI query, state police headquarters admitted there is not a single women police station in Bihar. Out of the 881 police stations, there are only 10 separate police stations for scheduled castes in the state.
The proposal for setting up separate women police stations one each at Patna, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga and Gaya are still under consideration. The home department, in its annual report tabled in the state legislature in the last monsoon session, said that the government is committed to set up separate police stations for women so that they could lodge their complaints without any fear.
The government was also committed to set up psychological support center and helpline exclusively for women and children.
Incidentally, the government report suggests that incidents of atrocities on women in Bihar witnessed a rise in 2008 especially in the cases related to abduction, dowry-related deaths, molestation, eve-teasing and rape.
According to the figures compiled by the state police headquarters, as many as 6,186 cases of atrocities (1,041 incidents related to rape, 1,494 kidnapping, 1,233 murder for dowry, 2,230 dowry harassment and 188 cases of eve-teasing and molestation) were registered against women across Bihar in 2008.
A comparative study of the figures available clearly indicates there was increase in such incidents in 2008 compared to the corresponding period the previous year. While 1,012 cases were registered in connection with kidnapping of women in 2007, the number went up to 1,494 in 2008.
The number of dowry death rose from 1,226 in 2007 to 1,233 in 2008. Similarly, cases of atrocities perpetrated on women for dowry rose to 2,230 in 2008 from 1,493 in 2007.
Cases relating to eve-teasing and molestation shot up to 188 during 2008, 20 more than the previous year. The recent disrobing of a woman in Patna in full public view on the busy Exhibition Road had put the NDA government on the back foot. CM Nitish Kumar had described the stripping of the woman in public view as a slur on a civilized society.link
Out of the 881 police stations in Bihar, there is not a single separate police station for women. CM Nitish Kumar had initiated a number of measures to ensure women's empowerment, the first being reservation of 50 per cent posts for them in the Panchayati Raj institutions and local bodies.
In a RTI query, state police headquarters admitted there is not a single women police station in Bihar. Out of the 881 police stations, there are only 10 separate police stations for scheduled castes in the state.
The proposal for setting up separate women police stations one each at Patna, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga and Gaya are still under consideration. The home department, in its annual report tabled in the state legislature in the last monsoon session, said that the government is committed to set up separate police stations for women so that they could lodge their complaints without any fear.
The government was also committed to set up psychological support center and helpline exclusively for women and children.
Incidentally, the government report suggests that incidents of atrocities on women in Bihar witnessed a rise in 2008 especially in the cases related to abduction, dowry-related deaths, molestation, eve-teasing and rape.
According to the figures compiled by the state police headquarters, as many as 6,186 cases of atrocities (1,041 incidents related to rape, 1,494 kidnapping, 1,233 murder for dowry, 2,230 dowry harassment and 188 cases of eve-teasing and molestation) were registered against women across Bihar in 2008.
A comparative study of the figures available clearly indicates there was increase in such incidents in 2008 compared to the corresponding period the previous year. While 1,012 cases were registered in connection with kidnapping of women in 2007, the number went up to 1,494 in 2008.
The number of dowry death rose from 1,226 in 2007 to 1,233 in 2008. Similarly, cases of atrocities perpetrated on women for dowry rose to 2,230 in 2008 from 1,493 in 2007.
Cases relating to eve-teasing and molestation shot up to 188 during 2008, 20 more than the previous year. The recent disrobing of a woman in Patna in full public view on the busy Exhibition Road had put the NDA government on the back foot. CM Nitish Kumar had described the stripping of the woman in public view as a slur on a civilized society.link
Thursday 24 September 2009
Security alert for Durga Puja in Bihar
High security alert has been sounded in Bihar ahead of Durga puja to ensure peace and harmony in communally sensitive areas of the state.
Patrolling has been intensified in communally sensitive areas. Two companies of Rapid Action Force (RAF) have taken position in Patna and Bhagalpur, Additional Director General of Police (headquarters) Neelmani told reporters.
In more communally-sensitive areas, the RAF would stage flag march once in a day to instill confidence among the people, while extra security arrangements have been made to protect all vital installations, including properties of the Railways and Centre.
Besides, patrolling has also been intensified in communally-sensitive pockets in Patna, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Madhubani and West Champaran districts.
Static deployment of Bihar Military Police and district armed police personnel has been made in vulnerable areas to prevent any untoward incident, he said.link
Patrolling has been intensified in communally sensitive areas. Two companies of Rapid Action Force (RAF) have taken position in Patna and Bhagalpur, Additional Director General of Police (headquarters) Neelmani told reporters.
In more communally-sensitive areas, the RAF would stage flag march once in a day to instill confidence among the people, while extra security arrangements have been made to protect all vital installations, including properties of the Railways and Centre.
Besides, patrolling has also been intensified in communally-sensitive pockets in Patna, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Madhubani and West Champaran districts.
Static deployment of Bihar Military Police and district armed police personnel has been made in vulnerable areas to prevent any untoward incident, he said.link
Tuesday 1 September 2009
Baby born with heart outside chest in Bihar
Five-day old baby is being described as a miracle after he survived being born with heart outside of this chest.
Vibha Devi, who was born on Thursday in a remote rural village in India’s Bihar state, was rushed by 24hr train to the capital by his desperate father.
Leaving his wife behind, Chander Manjhi and his father-in-law travelled to Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to try to save the child’s life.
During a complete check-up doctors found the baby also has multiple disorders. Apart from the protruding heart, he also has a hole in his heart and has a single pump (for pumping blood). A normal heart has two pumps.
Suffering from a condition known as Ectopia Cordis, which causes the heart to be abnormally placed inside or outside of the body, most babies die within hours of being born.
However, there is guarded optimism for Vibha after the child survived the arduous 800-mile train journey from Muzaffarpur to Delhi.
“He is stable and is being treated for infection. Once the infection goes, we will do the surgery,” said Dr A.K. Bisoi, a cardiologist at the Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery Department at AIIMS.
“His parents are lucky the baby is still alive even after infection as it has spread to all body parts. We are trying our best to save the baby.”
Due to the family’s income and the rarity of the child’s condition, cardiologists at AIIMS, including Dr Bisoi, are providing treatment for free.
A team of five surgeons is on stand-by to operate should Vibha survive the next few weeks.
“The surgery is a multi-layered procedure and might take months,” said Dr Bisoi.
“We have to create space step by step and the chest wall has to be reconstructed.
“In India, no infant with such a defect has survived,” Dr Bisoi added.
There are only three survivors suffering from the disease in the world. But this baby is the only one with two heart defects,’ he said.
‘It’s a miracle and challenge for doctors. Every extra day he survives gives us an opportunity to deal with the rare disease and we are learning a lot from the case. We are doing our best to ensure the child lives,’ Bisoi said.
For now, the baby’s heart has been covered with a synthetic membrane and infected blood fully replaced from his body.
In 2006, doctors in Florida, U.S. carried out a similar operation on Naseem Hasni who was born with his heart outside his chest.
Doctors wrapped his heart in Gore-Tex, a waterproof, breathable fabric used in outdoor clothing and medical applications. His heart was then wrapped in a layer of his own skin, to substitute for his missing pericardium, the sac that encloses the heart. The heart was then slowly eased inside his chest.link
Vibha Devi, who was born on Thursday in a remote rural village in India’s Bihar state, was rushed by 24hr train to the capital by his desperate father.
Leaving his wife behind, Chander Manjhi and his father-in-law travelled to Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to try to save the child’s life.
During a complete check-up doctors found the baby also has multiple disorders. Apart from the protruding heart, he also has a hole in his heart and has a single pump (for pumping blood). A normal heart has two pumps.
Suffering from a condition known as Ectopia Cordis, which causes the heart to be abnormally placed inside or outside of the body, most babies die within hours of being born.
However, there is guarded optimism for Vibha after the child survived the arduous 800-mile train journey from Muzaffarpur to Delhi.
“He is stable and is being treated for infection. Once the infection goes, we will do the surgery,” said Dr A.K. Bisoi, a cardiologist at the Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery Department at AIIMS.
“His parents are lucky the baby is still alive even after infection as it has spread to all body parts. We are trying our best to save the baby.”
Due to the family’s income and the rarity of the child’s condition, cardiologists at AIIMS, including Dr Bisoi, are providing treatment for free.
A team of five surgeons is on stand-by to operate should Vibha survive the next few weeks.
“The surgery is a multi-layered procedure and might take months,” said Dr Bisoi.
“We have to create space step by step and the chest wall has to be reconstructed.
“In India, no infant with such a defect has survived,” Dr Bisoi added.
There are only three survivors suffering from the disease in the world. But this baby is the only one with two heart defects,’ he said.
‘It’s a miracle and challenge for doctors. Every extra day he survives gives us an opportunity to deal with the rare disease and we are learning a lot from the case. We are doing our best to ensure the child lives,’ Bisoi said.
For now, the baby’s heart has been covered with a synthetic membrane and infected blood fully replaced from his body.
In 2006, doctors in Florida, U.S. carried out a similar operation on Naseem Hasni who was born with his heart outside his chest.
Doctors wrapped his heart in Gore-Tex, a waterproof, breathable fabric used in outdoor clothing and medical applications. His heart was then wrapped in a layer of his own skin, to substitute for his missing pericardium, the sac that encloses the heart. The heart was then slowly eased inside his chest.link
Monday 10 August 2009
39 encephalitis deaths, high alert in Bihar
After the death of at least 39 children in Bihar in the past 15 days, a high alert was sounded in Bihar, health officials said here Monday.
Most of the deaths took place at Patna Medical College and Hospital in the last two weeks.
“Several more children are in various hospitals for treatment,” Sanjata Roy Choudhary, head of the paediatric department at the hospital, told.
All the dead were below 10 years and from poor families, she said, adding she also suspected that two or three children died of Japanese encephalitis.
According to hospital officials, most of the fatalities were from different villages in the flood prone districts of Muzaffarpur and Vaishali in northern Bihar.
Choudhary said that she had already informed the departments concerned of the spread of the disease in the region.
Encephalitis, transmitted by a mosquito bite, is a viral infection occurring throughout south, south east and east Asia.link
Saturday 1 August 2009
Floods affect one lakh people in Bihar, help rushed
Around one lakh people were affected as the swollen Bagmati breached its embankment near Tajpur in Bihar's Sitamarhi district on Saturday, prompting Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to order a high-level probe into the breach and deployment of National Disaster Response Force personnel.
The river breached its embankment in a stretch of 40 - 50 metres at Tajpur under the Runnisayedpur block, inundating vast areas and several villages in eight panchayats of the district, official sources said.
As reports of swirling waters of Bagmati breaching the embankment reached him, Kumar held a high-level meeting with state Water Resources minister Vijendra Yadav, Principal Secretary (Water Resources) M R Nayak, besides Principal Secretary (Disaster Management) and other senior officials.
He ordered immediate deployment of NDRF in the affected areas to step up relief and rescue operations, an official spokesman said.
The NDRF personnel would reach the site within hours with necessary equipment, the spokesman said.
Kumar said the breach repair works were being carried out by the experts, including the engineers of the flood-fighting cells, on a "war-footing".
An estimated one lakh people were hit by the floods, the sources said, adding reports of four to five children being swept away in the swift currents were being verified.
Road communication between Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi was likely to be affected as flood waters submerged the National Highway near Koati, about 17 km from here, they said.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that the breach occurred due to digging near the embankment last night and the river swelled over a period of time because of sharp erosions.
Flood fighting continued at the breach-site and the engineers expected to plug the breach shortly, they said.
Divisional Commissioner, Tirhut, S M Raju, District Magistrate Sitamarhi and other senior officials reached the spot to oversee the relief and rescue operations.
The Water Resources Minister accompanied by Principal Secretary of the department and disaster management officials, airdashed to Sitamarhi to take stock of the situation.link
The river breached its embankment in a stretch of 40 - 50 metres at Tajpur under the Runnisayedpur block, inundating vast areas and several villages in eight panchayats of the district, official sources said.
As reports of swirling waters of Bagmati breaching the embankment reached him, Kumar held a high-level meeting with state Water Resources minister Vijendra Yadav, Principal Secretary (Water Resources) M R Nayak, besides Principal Secretary (Disaster Management) and other senior officials.
He ordered immediate deployment of NDRF in the affected areas to step up relief and rescue operations, an official spokesman said.
The NDRF personnel would reach the site within hours with necessary equipment, the spokesman said.
Kumar said the breach repair works were being carried out by the experts, including the engineers of the flood-fighting cells, on a "war-footing".
An estimated one lakh people were hit by the floods, the sources said, adding reports of four to five children being swept away in the swift currents were being verified.
Road communication between Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi was likely to be affected as flood waters submerged the National Highway near Koati, about 17 km from here, they said.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that the breach occurred due to digging near the embankment last night and the river swelled over a period of time because of sharp erosions.
Flood fighting continued at the breach-site and the engineers expected to plug the breach shortly, they said.
Divisional Commissioner, Tirhut, S M Raju, District Magistrate Sitamarhi and other senior officials reached the spot to oversee the relief and rescue operations.
The Water Resources Minister accompanied by Principal Secretary of the department and disaster management officials, airdashed to Sitamarhi to take stock of the situation.link
Wednesday 29 July 2009
Govt gears up to promote Bihari food products
Chief minister Nitish Kumar has a dream that Bihari food products should find place on every dinning table of the country. This was stated by principal secretary of industry A K Sinha at the `International Summit-cum-Exhibition on Food Processing and Agribusiness' being held at New Delhi.
While interacting with the participants, Sinha said that the government has geared up to achieve that. He said that the industry department has so far undertaken five road shows in Patna, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Begusarai and Kolkata for highlighting the strong areas of food processing to different investors.
Sinha mentioned the new schemes launched by the Bihar government and stressed that the National Commission for Farmers has dubbed Bihar the `sleeping giant' of Indian agriculture. He said that Bihar produces 50 lakh metric tonnes of paddy and 20 lakh metric tonnes of maize. He also pointed out that Bihar was the third largest producer of vegetables and seventh largest producer of fruits. He said that 75 per cent of the litchi is produced in Bihar and there are 10 lakh metric tonnes of banana and 20 lakh metric tonnes of `makhana' produced in the state.
Sinha said that Bihar has massive opportunities for rice-based industry like modern rice milling and husk-based power plants and it is the largest market for milled rice. He also pointed towards the potentiality of maize-based industry such as starch, poultry feed, corn oil and flakes and flour units. He said that the state has decided to develop two integrated food zones and food parks and would set up 100 rural agribusiness centres.
He also spoke about the enabling factors -- Bihar is the first state in the country to prepare a vision document and has come out with a very attractive policy package. He said that the state has launched two major schemes for investment in food processing sector. The first provides capital grant up to 40 per cent of the project cost, the maximum being Rs 10 crore. The second scheme for food parks provides a capital grant up to 20 per cent, maximum Rs 15 crore.link
While interacting with the participants, Sinha said that the government has geared up to achieve that. He said that the industry department has so far undertaken five road shows in Patna, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Begusarai and Kolkata for highlighting the strong areas of food processing to different investors.
Sinha mentioned the new schemes launched by the Bihar government and stressed that the National Commission for Farmers has dubbed Bihar the `sleeping giant' of Indian agriculture. He said that Bihar produces 50 lakh metric tonnes of paddy and 20 lakh metric tonnes of maize. He also pointed out that Bihar was the third largest producer of vegetables and seventh largest producer of fruits. He said that 75 per cent of the litchi is produced in Bihar and there are 10 lakh metric tonnes of banana and 20 lakh metric tonnes of `makhana' produced in the state.
Sinha said that Bihar has massive opportunities for rice-based industry like modern rice milling and husk-based power plants and it is the largest market for milled rice. He also pointed towards the potentiality of maize-based industry such as starch, poultry feed, corn oil and flakes and flour units. He said that the state has decided to develop two integrated food zones and food parks and would set up 100 rural agribusiness centres.
He also spoke about the enabling factors -- Bihar is the first state in the country to prepare a vision document and has come out with a very attractive policy package. He said that the state has launched two major schemes for investment in food processing sector. The first provides capital grant up to 40 per cent of the project cost, the maximum being Rs 10 crore. The second scheme for food parks provides a capital grant up to 20 per cent, maximum Rs 15 crore.link
Tuesday 28 July 2009
Prasan Sinha's movie makes it to Cannes
Bihari filmmaker Prasan Sinha's first Hindi digital feature film, `Kismet Ek Anokha Mor', was well received at the 62nd Cannes
Film Festival.
Sinha, who hails from Muzaffarpur in Bihar and shifted to Delhi a decade ago, shot the movie
in digital format in Tikli village in Aravali hills in Haryana in 14 days. The medium-budget film was premiered in the India Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival- 2009 on May 16.
Film celebrities like Sharmila Tagore, Subhash Ghai, Rakesh Roshan and Jugmohan Mundra were present during the show. He said the movie would also be screened at Dubai Film Festival and Venice Film Festival. It would be the opening film in the digital section of International Film Festival of India in Goa.
Having over 25 years of working experience in filmmaking with eminent filmmakers like Saeed Akhtar Mirza, Sinha has so far directed 45 documentary films, 25 corporate films, 10 ad films and more than 365 episodes of various TV serials. Sinha's directorial venture was `Sab Golmaal Hai' for DD metro.
"We have made an attempt to introduce a new concept in filmmaking which is of low budget and does away with the menace of piracy," Sinha said.
The film, produced by Abhay Yadav, is based in rural India and gives the message of self-employment. All the actors of the film have worked in rural theatre.
"Digital format shoot brings down the production cost by 40-50%," Sinha said and added some parts of Slumdog Millionaire were also shot in the digital format.
Talking about his upcoming movie `My Dear Brother-in-Law', Sinha said it's a comedy depicting a middle class family of a village and their old value system.link
Film Festival.
Sinha, who hails from Muzaffarpur in Bihar and shifted to Delhi a decade ago, shot the movie
in digital format in Tikli village in Aravali hills in Haryana in 14 days. The medium-budget film was premiered in the India Pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival- 2009 on May 16.
Film celebrities like Sharmila Tagore, Subhash Ghai, Rakesh Roshan and Jugmohan Mundra were present during the show. He said the movie would also be screened at Dubai Film Festival and Venice Film Festival. It would be the opening film in the digital section of International Film Festival of India in Goa.
Having over 25 years of working experience in filmmaking with eminent filmmakers like Saeed Akhtar Mirza, Sinha has so far directed 45 documentary films, 25 corporate films, 10 ad films and more than 365 episodes of various TV serials. Sinha's directorial venture was `Sab Golmaal Hai' for DD metro.
"We have made an attempt to introduce a new concept in filmmaking which is of low budget and does away with the menace of piracy," Sinha said.
The film, produced by Abhay Yadav, is based in rural India and gives the message of self-employment. All the actors of the film have worked in rural theatre.
"Digital format shoot brings down the production cost by 40-50%," Sinha said and added some parts of Slumdog Millionaire were also shot in the digital format.
Talking about his upcoming movie `My Dear Brother-in-Law', Sinha said it's a comedy depicting a middle class family of a village and their old value system.link
Friday 10 July 2009
Bihar govt asked to appoint conservator for tiger reserve
Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has asked the Bihar government to appoint a full-time conservator in the Valmiki Tiger Reserve in the state at the earliest to ensure better management in the park where tiger-count has declined in the recent years.
Expressing his concern over the fate of tigers, whose number has declined from 30 to 13, and other wildlife in the park spread over 880.78 sq km, Ramesh, in a letter to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, urged him to expedite the process of signing tripartite pact with the Centre so as to avail central assisted fund.
The minister has sought reasons as to why no full-time conservator has been appointed in the park even when there is no dearth of officials, a senior official in the environment ministry said.
The top post in the reserve in Betia in Champaran district had been lying vacant for the last nine months and currently conservator Ashok Prasad has been entrusted with multiple charge of Muzaffarpur, Betia and Siwan forests, he added.
The state of affairs of field staff is equally precarious in the reserve with at least 40 per cent of the total posts lying vacant.
Due to vacancy at the top level, poachers get sufficient security gaps to target the endangered predators.
Except miscellaneous funds to meet the salary of the staff, there is no separate fund allocated by the state for the management and development of the park.link
Expressing his concern over the fate of tigers, whose number has declined from 30 to 13, and other wildlife in the park spread over 880.78 sq km, Ramesh, in a letter to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, urged him to expedite the process of signing tripartite pact with the Centre so as to avail central assisted fund.
The minister has sought reasons as to why no full-time conservator has been appointed in the park even when there is no dearth of officials, a senior official in the environment ministry said.
The top post in the reserve in Betia in Champaran district had been lying vacant for the last nine months and currently conservator Ashok Prasad has been entrusted with multiple charge of Muzaffarpur, Betia and Siwan forests, he added.
The state of affairs of field staff is equally precarious in the reserve with at least 40 per cent of the total posts lying vacant.
Due to vacancy at the top level, poachers get sufficient security gaps to target the endangered predators.
Except miscellaneous funds to meet the salary of the staff, there is no separate fund allocated by the state for the management and development of the park.link
Monday 11 May 2009
Litchi production in bihar may dip by 50 per cent this season
Litchi production is likely to dip by 20 per cent from the normal 4.2 lakh tonnes to around 3.36 lakh tonnes this year due to adverse weather conditions in the growing regions.
"This year the production may go down by 20 per cent from the normal crop size as the weather was extremely hot with almost no rainfall in the main growing regions of Bihar, Uttrakhand and Himachal," Litchi Growers Association of India President Niraj Chhinwal.
In Bihar production may dip by 50 per cent if there is no rainfall in a week, a litchi farmer in Muzaffarpur said.
For the last 2-3 years there has been a dip in litchi production due to adverse weather conditions, he added.
The season for the fruit has already started with the 'Bambiya' variety from West Bengal currently available in the markets.
The most popular variety 'Sahi', grown in Muzaffarpur, will hit the market from May 20, Chhinwal added. The Bihar variety will be followed by the ones from Uttarakhand and then Himachal.
Litchi is mainly grown in about 7,000 hectares in Bihar, West Bengal, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. The fruit is also grown in Tripura, Assam, Orissa and Jharkhand.
"This year the production may go down by 20 per cent from the normal crop size as the weather was extremely hot with almost no rainfall in the main growing regions of Bihar, Uttrakhand and Himachal," Litchi Growers Association of India President Niraj Chhinwal.
In Bihar production may dip by 50 per cent if there is no rainfall in a week, a litchi farmer in Muzaffarpur said.
For the last 2-3 years there has been a dip in litchi production due to adverse weather conditions, he added.
The season for the fruit has already started with the 'Bambiya' variety from West Bengal currently available in the markets.
The most popular variety 'Sahi', grown in Muzaffarpur, will hit the market from May 20, Chhinwal added. The Bihar variety will be followed by the ones from Uttarakhand and then Himachal.
Litchi is mainly grown in about 7,000 hectares in Bihar, West Bengal, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. The fruit is also grown in Tripura, Assam, Orissa and Jharkhand.
Tuesday 17 March 2009
60 expelled on first day of +2 exams in Bihar
At least 60 examinees were on Monday expelled for using unfair means on the first day of plus two examinations, being conducted by the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB).
According to the BSEB control room, eight examinees were expelled at Munger, five at Bhagalpur, four at Ara, three at Patna, 11 at Muzaffarpur, eight at Siwan, one at Samastipur, 17 at Saharsa, two at Nawada and one examinee was expelled at Sheohar.
Altogether 5,82,309 examinees are appearing at the Intermediate examinations at 459 examination centres across the state. Compared to last year, 72,000 more examinees are appearing at the examination this year.
According to the BSEB control room, eight examinees were expelled at Munger, five at Bhagalpur, four at Ara, three at Patna, 11 at Muzaffarpur, eight at Siwan, one at Samastipur, 17 at Saharsa, two at Nawada and one examinee was expelled at Sheohar.
Altogether 5,82,309 examinees are appearing at the Intermediate examinations at 459 examination centres across the state. Compared to last year, 72,000 more examinees are appearing at the examination this year.
Saturday 14 February 2009
12 injured in Bihar train collision
At least 12 people were injured when a passenger train collided with a goods train in Bihar's Motihari district early on Saturday morning, the second accident within 24 hours.
15 killed as Coromandel Express derails in Orissa
The Gorakhpur-Muzaffarpur passenger train collided with the engine of a goods train standing at Sugauli railway station near Motihari. "All the injured have been admitted in a local government hospital for treatment," the official said.
He said the accident took place when the passenger train driver overshot a red signal. Fifteen people were killed and 140 injured when the Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express derailed in Orissa.
Cries for help pierce silence of night
Lalu Prasad, while presenting the interim railway budget for 2009-10 in parliament on Friday had pointed to the railway's safety record.
15 killed as Coromandel Express derails in Orissa
The Gorakhpur-Muzaffarpur passenger train collided with the engine of a goods train standing at Sugauli railway station near Motihari. "All the injured have been admitted in a local government hospital for treatment," the official said.
He said the accident took place when the passenger train driver overshot a red signal. Fifteen people were killed and 140 injured when the Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express derailed in Orissa.
Cries for help pierce silence of night
Lalu Prasad, while presenting the interim railway budget for 2009-10 in parliament on Friday had pointed to the railway's safety record.
Tuesday 27 January 2009
Paswan makes unilateral announcemnt on Bihar candidates
In what could be considered as a jolt to the Congress-led UPA, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan on Monday announced candidates for 50% of the total Lok Sabha seats in Bihar.
Paswan announced candidates for 20 of the 40 LS seats in Bihar that include Araria, Purnea, Supaul, Khagaria, Hajipur, Jehanabad, Begusarai, Sheohar, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Ujiyarpur, Bettiah, Bagha, Motihari, Nawada, Gaya, Ara and Patliputra.
Though Paswan's announcement ahead of any seat sharing talks within the UPA allies in Bihar is seen as his bargaining tactic with the Congress to corner prized seats, the move could also be interpreted as his open defiance on accommodating RJD, much like the last time in 2005.
Speaking to a news agency in the Capital on Monday, Paswan said: "Party leaders in the state are in favour of contesting the elections alone." He added that no concrete proposal for seat sharing had, however, come to his party from either the Congress or the RJD.
Putting the RJD on the same pedestal as the ruling NDA in Bihar, a party leader was quoted as saying, "People have already seen RJD's Lalu Prasad and JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar and are now looking for a change."
Hinting at the fact that he may prefer to go it alone at the hustings, Paswan said, "The RJD's mass base among Muslims and Yadavs has eroded." link
Paswan announced candidates for 20 of the 40 LS seats in Bihar that include Araria, Purnea, Supaul, Khagaria, Hajipur, Jehanabad, Begusarai, Sheohar, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Ujiyarpur, Bettiah, Bagha, Motihari, Nawada, Gaya, Ara and Patliputra.
Though Paswan's announcement ahead of any seat sharing talks within the UPA allies in Bihar is seen as his bargaining tactic with the Congress to corner prized seats, the move could also be interpreted as his open defiance on accommodating RJD, much like the last time in 2005.
Speaking to a news agency in the Capital on Monday, Paswan said: "Party leaders in the state are in favour of contesting the elections alone." He added that no concrete proposal for seat sharing had, however, come to his party from either the Congress or the RJD.
Putting the RJD on the same pedestal as the ruling NDA in Bihar, a party leader was quoted as saying, "People have already seen RJD's Lalu Prasad and JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar and are now looking for a change."
Hinting at the fact that he may prefer to go it alone at the hustings, Paswan said, "The RJD's mass base among Muslims and Yadavs has eroded." link
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