The state cabinet on Thursday approved the government's plan to provide Rs 1.79 crore each to all 8,398 panchayats over the next four years for drinking water facilities and construction of metal lanes and drains as part of chief minister Nitish Kumar's "seven resolves".

It also gave its provisional consent for the monsoon session of the state legislature from July 29 to August 4. It will have five sittings, excluding Saturday and Sunday, during the period.

The cabinet also discussed 42 agendas and approved proposals worth Rs 16,437 crore related to education, social welfare, planning and development and health during 2016-17 financial year. The schemes on which the money will be spent are also aimed at fulfilling Nitish's seven resolves.

Cabinet secretariat department principal secretary Brajesh Mehrotra said: "Altogether, about Rs 14,250 crore will be provided to the panchayats in the state at the rate of Rs 1.79 crore to each over the next four years to implement schemes related to drinking water, pucca lanes and drains. The panchayati raj department will monitor the implementation of the schemes."

He added that Rs 16,437 crore approved for four different sectors include expenditure on setting up of 16 nursing colleges with hostels, 54 auxiliary nursing and midwifery training schools with hostel, 33 paramedical training institutes, 23 general nursing and midwifery training schools.

The funds also include expenditure of Rs 1,121 crore on payment of salary during 2016-17 to government primary and middle schoolteachers working in blocks and municipal bodies as well as various social security schemes.

The "seven resolves for a developed Bihar" were propagated by Nitish in the run-up to the Assembly elections last year. They include strengthening the youth, 35 per cent reservation for women in government jobs, electricity connection to every household, piped water supply to every household, pucca lanes and drains in all villages and towns, toilets in every house and increased opportunities with better higher education.

Of the resolves, the one promising 35 per cent reservation to women in government jobs has already been fulfilled.

Mehrotra added that the cabinet approved the proposal to reduce 1 per cent stamp duty and 2 per cent registration fee on all education and healthcare loans in the state to 0.5 per cent each. The move will benefit boys and girls opting for student credit card scheme, which will provision Rs 4 lakh loan for higher education.

The cabinet also approved the government proposal to spend Rs 285 crore on the salary of teachers in 1,128 non-government madarsas.

In another move, the cabinet gave its consent to the plan to spend Rs 92 crore on construction of bridges, culverts, approach roads and land acquisition for them along the 83km-long stretch between Sultanganj in Bhagalpur district and Deoghar in Jharghand for kanwariyas, the devotees of Lord Shiv.