What is Modi govt’s ‘Purvodaya’ plan covering Bihar, Jharkhand, 3 other states?

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced that the government will formulate a plan, ‘Purvodaya’, for the all-round development of five states, including Bihar and Andhra Pradesh – seen crucial for the survival of the NDA government.

“The states in the Eastern part of the country are rich in endowments and have strong cultural traditions,” Sitharaman said in her budget speech.

“We will formulate a plan, Purvodaya, for the all-round development of the eastern region of the country covering Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh,” she added.

The finance minister said the ‘Purvodaya’ plan will cover human resource development, infrastructure, and generation of economic opportunities to make the region an engine to attain ‘Viksit Bharat’.

However, it is still not clear what metrics were used to select these five states.

The idea of ‘Purvodaya’ was first publicly aired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 after he dedicated a refinery of the Indian Oil Corporation Limited in Paradip, reported The Times of India.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Modi said the development of the country’s eastern region will get new momentum and energy through the “Purvodaya” plan. New impetus will be given to the development of important infrastructure such as highways, water projects and power projects, he added.

Union home minister Amit Shah said ‘Purvodaya’ scheme has been announced in the budget in order to give new impetus to the development of the eastern region of the country.

“This scheme will give new energy to infrastructure, human resources, employment and economic development opportunities in these regions and these regions will play an important role in building a developed and self-reliant India,” he said.