Bihar's Burden

Bihar is considered one of the least developed states in the country.Why? see the facts- 89.6 percent of population is rural,Sex ratio-921/1000,Literacy rate- 46.96%(all) and 32.12(females), Infant mortality rate- 61 per thousand, Underweight children below three years-54.4%,Immunization before 2 years of age-12.8%, Growth of Gross State Domestic Products for the year 2005-06 was 3.92! In every aspect of consideration , Bihar lags behind the national average alarmingly. Development in Bihar remained frozen for 15 years, whereas casteism, goonda domination of administrative machinery(alleged), labor migration, militancy saw a considerable rise, and the system seems punctured.Worse, the creation of Jharkhand deprived it of its mineral resources and took the industrial base completely away.Now, the state seems to depend completely on agriculture, that too, is facing problems due to the existing social structure.Today, a bihari's average income is less than one third national average.About 87 percent of land holdings are marginal holdings, one can easily imagine the polarization of income with the lower end almost on the verge of starvation.
The Bihari migrant , whenever he goes, has been treated with dual social standards. Recent Assam killings and the Maharashtra anti-bihari turmoil may give some insight.According to the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration, nearly one in five schools in Bihar is in "urgent need of repair", leave alone the facilities like toilets, library, drinking water and even teachers.For those 425 lakhs under poverty line, especially dalits ; education, health care, family planning is always secondary. Most live in houses built of mud, guaranteed to dissolve in an assured annual flood. A green vegetable dish in everyday meal is a luxury, for most, a piece of onion and a green chilli will suffice. For an agricultural worker, the wage rate is something like 3 kilograms of rice per day, that too, during harvest season. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme is not effective here, they have job cards, but no job. The government's Mid-day meal scheme in schools is not implemented everywhere. The rules of nutrition don't apply here,the question is of survival.Clearly, the situation in rural extremes of Bihar is beyond the imagination of those living in
technologically crafted metros. The state may boast of its domination in IAS examinations, IIT graduates, and razor-sharp minded people present all over the world, but most of them are those who migrated for education , and certainly belong to the 10 percent of bihari population (those residing in urban areas) which is mainly extremely committed and progressive middle class. Remaining 90 percent live in darkness.
Bihar's problem is not just a matter of building better roads, providing electricity or 'improving connectivity', it goes beyond this. The current government seems to have a plan or at least, determination. But, still, Bihar waits for deliverance.