Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Thursday that he would launch a movement across the State if the Union government did not grant Bihar special category status. Though he has urged Opposition BJP leaders to raise the issue with the BJP-led Union government, claiming that the status was needed for the State to progress, the State’s BJP leaders have asked the CM to first submit a No Objection Certificate for the grants that Bihar has already received from the Centre.
Special category status is generally granted to States which face geographical and socio-economic disadvantages, such as those which lie along an international border, have hilly terrain, a sizable share of tribal population, or suffer from economic and infrastructural backwardness. Such States receive a higher share of Central funding and financial support for development purposes.
