Patna, Sept. 5: The state government has decided to appoint 250 Bengali teachers for schools on the Bihar-Bengal border. The initiative was taken to bring students of bordering areas on par with their counterparts in Bengal.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar said: “The appointment of 250 Bengali teachers will fulfil the demands of the Bengali community. It is also an attempt by the government to give special impetus to language education in Bihar.”

He said that apart from appointment of teachers for the Bengali subject, the government is also committed towards appointment of teachers for Urdu in all schools and teachers for Sanskrit in middle schools.

Referring to an incident, he said: “I scored 88 marks out of 100 in Sanskrit in my matriculation examination. The Sanskrit paper marks was added to my aggregate marks that helped me get a scholarship at the national level.”

Stressing the need for English in government schools, Nitish said English education would be made effective but not compulsory so that rural students don’t face any problem in learning the language.

Nitish, without naming anyone, said: “Some people are jealous of the achievements of students from Bihar. The state has dominated the railway and civil service examinations, and many a times they indulge in attacking Bihari students who go to other states to appear for competitive examinations.”

The chief minister felicitated 11 teachers and education officers for their distinguished service for upliftment of education standards in Bihar.