Bihar Most Backward, Says Centre. RJD Mocks Nitish Kumar

Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh said that according to NITI Aayog's report, Bihar's composite score (52 out of 100) was the lowest among all states. The index, he added, used 115 indicators.

Bihar is India's most backward state according to a report, the Centre has said in parliament, and it has set off a new political controversy in the state in which the ruling BJP is part of the Nitish Kumar-led government. The government was responding to a question in the Lok Sabha by Rajeev Ranjan Singh, an MP of Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United (JDU) and the party's leader in parliament. Mr Singh asked whether NITI Aayog's Sustainable Development Goals report of 2020-21 had said Bihar is the most backward State in the country. "If so, the reasons for the backwardness of Bihar state," read the question. It also asked whether the Centre was considering the "long-pending demand" for special status for Bihar. Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh said in his written reply that according to NITI Aayog's report, Bihar's composite score (52 out of 100) was the lowest among all states. The index, he added, used 115 indicators.