Patna, June 3: Chief minister Nitish Kumar today said he was not opposed to the proposed food security bill in principle but suggested that the Centre should finance it.

“The states, particularly Bihar, lack resources. They (states) will be burdened furthermore if the bill is adopted in its present form,” Nitish told reporters on the sidelines of his weekly janata durbar.

Despite his reported proximity to the Congress, the chief minister has been consistent on his stand vis-à-vis the food security bill.

Time and again, he has stated that the Centre should desist from burdening states with the responsibility of footing the food security bill.

In keeping with what he has been saying all along, Nitish iterated: “Food security bill is the Centre’s idea and as such the latter should bear its entire cost.”

Replying to a query, Nitish, however, said that his concerns had been taken care of to some extent in the modified version of the bill cleared by the Parliament’s standing committee.

“But the Centre is still not clear on the issue of financing the venture,” he said.

Nitish also suggested that the commission to be constituted for execution of the bill must have a member each from the minority community, backward society, scheduled tribes and women.

“The commission must have at least five members drawn from the rural areas,” he said.

He suggested that the individual rather than the family, as suggested in the bill, should be treated as the unit to provide food security.

“The way the Election Commission prepares a voter list, there should be a separate and independent commission for the BPL families too, to identify the beneficiaries and help them under the scheme,” the chief minister said.

With regard to proposed meeting of chief ministers on internal security in New Delhi on June 5, Nitish said that the Centre must brief chief ministers on the agenda of the meet well in advance.

“It will enable us to put forth our stands more clearly,” he said.

On a query related to the Naxalite issue, Nitish said that village panchayats rather than districts should be treated as primary units for development.

Replying to a query on bypoll results for the Maharajganj Lok Sabha seat, Nitish said: “The result is awaited. If the Janata Dal (United) wins it will be treated as a victory for development. But if the party loses, we will find out the reasons for it.”

Counting of votes for the Maharajganj bypoll, that saw 47 per cent polling yesterday, is scheduled for June 5.

The bypoll was necessitated after sitting MP Umashankar Singh of the RJD died in February. Both Nitish and Lalu have high stakes on the outcome of this poll.