Bihar

• 07 Aug 2023

Amrit Bharat Station Scheme

Why in News?

On August 6, 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment works of 508 railway stations in the country through video conferencing under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. These include 49 railway stations of Bihar.

Key Points:

• It may be noted that in the first phase of this ambitious Amrit Bharat station scheme, a total of 49 railway stations in Bihar will be redeveloped.
• The foundation stone of two stations (Darbhanga and Sakri station) under the Darbhanga parliamentary constituency was laid through the virtual medium of the Prime Minister under the scheme. Darbhanga railway station will be developed as a world class station at a cost of 340 crores and Sakri station will be redeveloped at a cost of 18.9 crores.
• Under this scheme, a six-storey building (G+5) will be constructed in the western direction of the station. On the other hand, a (G+2) i.e. three-storey building will be constructed in the eastern direction, in which state-of-the-art facilities will be provided for the passengers.
• Naugachia railway station of Katihar-Barauni railway section, which is included in 1275 stations across the country, will also be rejuvenated under the Amrit Bharat station scheme. Railway stations of the first phase also include Naugachia, Pirpainti, Kahalgaon, Sultanganj of Bhagalpur.
• It is worth mentioning that modern facilities like wide concourse, foot over bridge, lift, escalator, waiting room, commercial area and retail counter etc. will be provided at these stations to be redeveloped under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme.
• The plan envisages multimodal transport. Passenger amenities at other minor stations will also be upgraded and will be provided with facilities like widened FOBs, frontage improvements, waiting areas, lifts, escalators etc.
• These stations of Bihar will be rejuvenated-
• Anugrah Narayan Road (Aurangabad), Lakhminia, Salona (Begusarai), Kahalgaon, Naugachia, Pirpainti, Sultanganj (Bhagalpur), Arrah, Bihiya (Bhojpur), Dumraon, Raghurnathpur (Buxar), Darbhanga Junction (Darbhanga), Gaya Junction, Paharpur ( Gaya), Jamui, Simtalla (Jamui), Jehanabad, Bhabua Road, Durgauti, Kudra (Kaimur (Bhabhua)), Barsoi Junction (Katihar), Khagaria Junction, Mansi (Khagaria), Kishanganj, Thakurganj (Kishanganj), Jaynagar , Madhubani, Sankri (Mudhubani), Jamalpur Junction (Munger), Dholi, Muzaffarpur Junction, Ramdayalu Nagar (Muzaffarpur), Bihar Sharif, Rajgir (Nalanda), Narkatiaganj Junction, Sugauli (West Champaran), Bakhtiyarpur, Badh, Fatuha, Taregna ( Patna), BapuDham Motihari (East Champaran), Banmankhi (Purnia), Rohtas, Sasaram (Rohtas), Saharsa (Saharsa), Dalsingh Sarai, Samastipur, Sonpur Junction (Saran), Sitamarhi and Hajipur Junction ( Vaishali).

The Book 'Nitish Kumar in Parliament' was released

Why in News?

On August 4, 2023, the book 'Nitish Kumar in Parliament' was released at the Jagjivan Ram Institute of Parliamentary Studies and Political Research, Patna.

Key Points:

• The book has been edited by sociologist Jagannarayan Singh Yadav and published by Sahitya Sansad Prakashan, Delhi.
• This book is a collection of speeches given by Nitish Kumar on various issues in Parliament during his tenure as MP and Union Minister from 1989 to 2005.
• This book is in five sections – The name of the first section of the book is Krishi Pradhan Bharat. In this, there is a compilation of statements made by Nitish in the Parliament regarding agriculture. The name of the second section is Indian Railways, it has five speeches given by Nitish about Railways. The name of the third section is Developing India, in which Nitish Kumar's vision about the country is given.
• The name of the fourth section is Indian Society, in which the mention made by Nitish Kumar about the condition of different classes is mentioned. The last and fifth section is Indian Polity. In this, Nitish Kumar has mentioned about the political situation in his speeches.