Patna: In a scathing attack on the UPA
government, the JD(U) on Sunday said that the Centre was
discriminating against Bihar and treating the state like a
"colony".
Highlighting the Bihar`s moderate Cash Deposit Ratio
(CDR) at about 36 per cent, Tiwari told reporters that the
public sector banks were not providing loans for industrial
activities in Bihar.
As it was the case during the British colonial rule
when the Britishers used to take away money from India to
their homeland, a similar situation prevailed in Bihar when it
was being deprived of using its money with the banks and
the same was going elsewhere in the country for development
activities, Tiwari said.
The banks functioning in Bihar were more keen to give
loans to the farmers with Kisan Credit Cards and not for
industrial activities, the JD(U) MP said, adding the CDR in
the state will increase only if the banks gave loans to those
setting up industries here.
Tiwari criticized the Centre for not giving coal
linkages for a slew of thermal power plants proposed in Bihar
to tide over power shortage.
At a time when 82 per cent of the population were
using lanterns to illuminate their houses in Bihar, the Centre
was steadfastly not heeding to their demand for coal linkages
to the thermal power plants being set up by the private
companies, he said.
Even a public sector thermal power plant at Barauni
was facing obstacle for its expansion plan for two units of
250 MW due to unavailablity of the coal linkage, the JD(U)
leader said.
The union budget too was disappointing as there was no
no special package for Bihar even as the Chief Minister Nitish
Kumar had urged the UPA government for special assistance to
tide over economic backwardness, Tiwari said.
In the education sector too, the Centre was dithering
on setting up the Central University of Bihar (CUB) at
Motihari and instead wanted land at Gaya for the purpose much
against the aspiration of the people and the state
legislature, he said.
"Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal`s obstinacy on the
CUB issue was a violation of the federal principles of the
constitution", Tiwari said.
Meanwhile, a former minister Mithilesh Singh joined
the JD(U) at a function where Tiwari gave him the membership
of the party.
PTI
