Patna, March 28: Energy minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav today said there is no proposal before the state government to create new districts, sub-divisions or blocks.

He was responding to a question in the Assembly today to a question raised by BJP MLA Bidyasagar Kesari.

"What happened to the committee formed by the state on the formation of new administrative units in the state?" asked BJP MLA Gyanendra Kumar Gyanu.

He said chief minister Nitish Kumar himself had promised to make Barh a district.

Leader of the Opposition Prem Kumar also talked about the committee formed by the NDA government having then deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi as its chairman. However, the minister stressed that there was no proposal for creation of new units. "I don't know if new districts or blocks will be created in the future. So far as the committee is concerned, you (the BJP) are now in the opposition. If you return to the treasury bench, the panel will be revived," he said. Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary , who was a member of the committee formed during the NDA regime, remarked that the committee was formed for formation of new blocks and not districts.

Banks

Finance minister Abdul Bari Siddiqui stated that government departments and institutions have been asked not to deposit money in commercial banks having a low credit-deposit ratio. The minister said he agreed that commercial banks were not giving enough credit or meeting the social banking obligations.

In response to a question raised by Shakeel Ahmad Khan of the Congress, energy minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav announced that the tabling of the Forbesganj police firing report in the Legislative Houses was being processed and it had already been approved by the cabinet.

Bijendra, in response to a question raised by BJP MLA Nitin Navin, denied that the Patna superintendent had withdrawn the order of the police station in-charge to hold a public-police meet once a week. However, when Nitin pointed out that no such meetings were being held in police stations of Patna, he said he would look into the matter.

Women

Minority welfare minister Abdul Gafoor assured the House that his department would initiate steps to give Rs 10,000 to Muslim women who have been divorced. RJD MLA Mohammad Nemuttlah pointed out that the state government has earmarked Rs 2 crore in 2014-15 of which only 1,169 divorced women received help, while a major portion of the money remained unspent as the petition of over 5,000 women were rejected by the Sunni Wakf Board.

Education minister Ashok Choudhary assured the House that the government was considering extending the 180-day maternity leave to women teachers on contract.