Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday presented the first Union Budget of Modi 3.0 government. The government has kept aside Rs 26,000 crore for the major infrastructural projects in Bihar.

In the big announcements, Sitharaman said Patna-Purnia and Buxar-Bhagalpur expressways will be constructed to boost the connectivity of Bihar. Besides, the Finance Minister announced a bridge would be constructed over the Ganga River in Buxar.

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Provisions will also be made to boost the sports infrastructure of Bihar. 

To boost tourism in Bihar, corridors will be developed at the Vishnupad and Mahabodhi temples. The comprehensive development of Rajgir has also been announced in the budget. In the streak of announcing a big bonanza for Bihar, FM Sitharaman said the government will restore the Nalanda University and develop the district as a tourism hub.    

Besides, Rs 11,500 crore has been allocated for irrigation and flood mitigation in Bihar. Apart from the aforementioned announcements, the Centre has proposed to invest Rs 21,400 crore in the power projects. 

Notably, the Centre on Monday denied a special category status to Bihar. Nitish Kumar's JDU, a key NDA ally, recently passed a resolution advocating for either special category status or a special package for Bihar. In response to a query from JDU MP Ramprit Mandal of Jhanjharpur, Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, explained that such provisions were previously granted based on a comprehensive assessment of various factors and the unique circumstances of a state.

He said Bihar does not match the criterion required to avail a special status.

“The Special Category Status for plan assistance was granted in the past by the National Development Council (NDC) to some States that were characterized by a number of features necessitating special consideration. Earlier, the request of Bihar for Special Category Status was considered by an Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) which submitted its Report on 30th March 30, 2012. The IMG came to the finding that based on existing NDC criteria, the case for Special Category Status for Bihar is not made out,” Chaudhary’s written reply in Lok Sabha read.

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The big allocation for Bihar’s infrastructure in the Union Budget clearly indicated the Centre has compensated the state’s special status demand.