Nitish Kumar with Montek Singh Ahluwalia in New Delhi. Picture by Ramakant Kushwaha

Patna, June 27: The Planning Commission today approved Bihar’s annual plan of Rs 28,000 crore for the 2012-13 fiscal, an increase of 30.09 per cent over 2011-12 in the total annual plan outlay.

The plan size of 2011-12 was worth Rs 21,018 crore.

The 2012-13 plan was approved at a high-level meeting of the Planning Commission involving its deputy chairman, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, his deputy, Sushil Kumar Modi, and other senior officials from the Centre and the state. The officials who attended the meeting said Ahluwalia appreciated the progress made by the state both on the fiscal and development fronts. “I am satisfied with the progress made in Bihar,” an official quoted Ahluwalia as saying. He added that the commission “readily” agreed to approve the plan size according to the state’s demand.

According to the details of the plan approved, the state government would use its own resources to finance 46.11 per cent (Rs 12,910 crore) of the plan. Besides, it would borrow 28.27 per cent (Rs 7,916 crore) and get 25.62 per cent (Rs 7,114 crore) as central assistance.

Happy with the panel for approving the plan size to his satisfaction, Nitish said the state’s own resources have now increased from barely 9.26 per cent in 2005-06 to more than 46 per cent in 2011-12. “Earlier, Bihar had to borrow to meet its non-plan expenditure like paying salary and wages to its workers. Now, the government has got savings after meeting its non-planned expenses to finance the development expenditure to the tune of 46 per cent,” Nitish added.

The plan size of the state was barely worth Rs 4,676 crore in 2005-06, when the Nitish Kumar government had taken over the reigns of Bihar from the Lalu-Rabri regime. According to sources, the plan size grew steadily in the subsequent fiscals with the government “tightening the loopholes in the fiscal policies and utilising resources well”.

Nitish said his government’s main priorities would continue to be infrastructure building, including roads, power and education besides providing social services like health, water supply, sanitation and rural housing. The share of roads, power, and education in the budgetary plan are worth 19 per cent, 7.15 per cent and 13 per cent, respectively.

Bihar’s economy, said the CM, had grown rapidly in the recent years. “The rate of growth of the gross state domestic product at the constant prices has been 12.08 per cent in the 11th Plan Period (2007-08 to 2011-12) according to the latest estimate,” he added.