Patna, Aug. 17: New Delhi will now be magnanimous to the state, road construction department minister Nand Kishore Yadav declared today.
"The Centre will show a big heart in allocating funds for road projects in Bihar with Nitish Kumar and Prime Minster Narendra Modi coming together," said Nand Kishore, who will meet Nitin Gadkari, the Union minister of road, transport and highways, after the Assembly session gets over on August 25.
Nand Kishore's predecessor, Tejashwi Prasad, had met Gadkari several times to push for state projects, and the last meeting was on February 8 this year. Some of the state's demands were met; the central road funds for national highways in the state were hiked from Rs 500 crore to Rs 1,000 crore annually, apart from upgrading 13 state highways to national highways. Last year, Gadkari had also okayed the rehabilitation of the Gandhi Setu at an estimated cost of Rs 1,742.01 crore.
But the state's other major neglected demands included a bridge over the Kosi river and repairing several national highways.
Asked about the demands raised by his predecessor and not fulfilled by the centre, Nand Kishore said: "Politics is no more an obstacle in development. To complete any work you need self confidence and determination. When I assumed office, I went through the previous files and I saw and the projects started in my time were left as usual with no further development. You should have authority to take decisions. I disposed all those previous filed in just 72 hours. It's my working attitude; I do not keep files with me for more than a day."
The BJP leader also cited personal chemistry: "I have a different relation with Gadkari ji. I know him for more than a decade. In 2005 when I was made the road construction minister, we were struggling to provide good roads. In 2006, Gadkariji came to Patna on my request and gave a presentation in the official chamber of Sushil Kumar Modi ji on how to construct good roads in tighter budget. His presentation was really impressive and impressed with his suggestion we established Bihar State Road Development Corporation Ltd."
