Jagannath Mishra - Special Contributions

Special Contributions

As the Chief Minister of Bihar the following important measures were taken –

Economy

• Establishment of several industrial units under the First Industrial Policy of the state.

• Approval granted for setting up of one industry in each district and 37 industrial estates.

• Establishment of several boards, corporations and public sector companies including the Industrial Development Authority and the Regional Industrial Authorities.

• For Bihar’s industrialisation, a demand was placed before the Union Government for value based royalty on coal and minerals of the state as Bihar was receiving very meagre share from the income generated by these resources.

• Demanded greater investment and plan allocation for the state under the Five-Year-Plan through the National Development Council.

• In 1981, a notification was issued to charge cess on the basis of the value of minerals which resulted increase in income from Rs.30 crores to Rs.500-600 crores from this source.

• Through an ordinance it was provided that the large industries of the state shall purchase the products of the ancilliary industries if the former desired to have protective security of the state.

• A demand was made to the Central Government to grant the right to impose ‘consignment tax’ on industrial products going out of the state in order to offset the loss of sales tax on these products in the name of ‘transfer of stock’.

• Raised the issue of ‘freight equalisation’ on the transfer of minerals out of the state which worked against industrialisation of Bihar as the industrial houses, owing to this policy, were setting up their industrial units out of Bihar.

• Improvement of road network in general with focus on all weather connectivity to villages.

Education

• Decision by Government to take over 54,000 primary schools, 3000 middle schools, 235 colleges, 429 sanskrit schools and 39 sanskrit colleges and grant of parity in pay and allowances to Sanskrit and Madarsa teachers with the Government teachers. Establishment of Sanskrit and Madarsa Boards.

• Grant of the status of the second official language to Urdu and appointment of 1000 Urdu translators and 4000 Urdu teachers, establishment of the Urdu Development Directorate, grant of Rupees 1 crore to the Urdu Academy and establishment of the Minorities Finance Corporation with the corpus of Rs.10 crores.

• Introduction of time-bound promotion scheme for the college and university teachers – 8000 teachers benefitted.

• Rs.2 crores were made available to the Lalit Narayan Mithila University to obtain recognition of the U.G.C.

• Acquisition of land and building in 1976 of Darbhanga Raj for the Mithila University.

• Adoption of UGC pay-scales and provision of posts of Readers and Professors for the Darbhanga Sanskrit University.

• Grant of recognition to Madarsa degree as being equivalent to university degree and for its eligibility for government jobs.

• Grant of UGC pay-scales to university teachers.

• In 1982, 150 project schools were established including several girl high schools to pay special attention to the education of girls.

With the motive to remove the illiteracy and to uplift the living standard of the society has founded many professional and other non profit institutes and organization, like :

• L.N. Mishra Institute of Economic Development and social Change, Patna

• L.N. Mishra College of Business Management, Muzaffarpur

• L.N. Mishra Tirhut College, Muzaffarpur

• Bihar Institute of Economic Studies, Patna

• L.N. Mishra Mithila University, Darbhanga

• Human Rights Protection Foundation, Patna

• Bihar Jan Vikas Manch

• Bihar Jan Congress, which later merged in Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)

Agriculture

• Effected several amendments to the Land Reform legislation along with acquisition and distribution of 2.50 lakh acres of land to the landless under the land reform programme.

• Owing to liberal grants, in 1982-83 alone 2.50 lakhs tubewells were sunk.

• Liberal grants to farmers for tubewells.

• More than 4000 Government tubewells were sunk.

• Strict implementation of minimum wages for agricultural labours.

• Abolition of irrigation cess along with arrears.

• Free electricity to farmers having a holding upto 10 acres.

Social

• Took special measures for upliftment of BPL families.

• Introduced a large number of programmes to ensure human rights of all sections of society such as dalits, backwards, women, children, farmers etc.

• Introduced several welfare schemes for teachers, non-teaching staff, Government employees, lawyers, rickshaw pullers, legal assistance to weaker sections, grant of Government employee status to 45000 chowkidars-dafadars, constitution of administrative machinery to ensure minimum wages to agricultural labourers etc.

• Identification, for the first time in 1976, of the most backward castes and grant of special privileges to them like benefits to most backward caste students at par with scheduled caste students, nomination of most backward caste representatives on the district boards etc.

• Grant of reservation, for the first time in the country in 1976, in the Universities and other educational institutions for the scheduled castes and tribes. Appointment of Commissioner of Reservations and constitution of reservation committees in each department of the Government.

• Welfare schemes started for industrial workers.

• Introduced, for the first time, social security pension for 23 lakhs old persons and widows, unemployment allowance for 3 lakhs educated unemployed youth and ownership right to 80 thousand rickshaw pullers.

• Adopted several measures for the security and welfare of minorities.

• Grant of residential plots to 11 lakh families under the habitat policy.

• Establishment of welfare fund and sanction of special library grant for advocates.

• Establishment of welfare fund for journalists.

• Submission of the report (26.12.1976) of the Mungeri Lal Commission constituted in 1971 to examine the condition of the socially and educationally backward classes and their numerical representation in government services.

• Subsequently, as the leader of the opposition, lent crucial support to making of the reservation policy for the backwards and its notification on 10.11.1978.

• On becoming the Chief Minister of Bihar for second time in 1980, amendment was made in the reservation policy so as to provide that backward candidates selected on their own merit (without availing benefits of reservation policy) would not be counted within the reserved quota, i.e., they would be adjusted within the general quota. This resulted in increase in their representation in the government services.

• Increased the number of Members in the Bihar Public Service Commission to have representations from the minorities, scheduled castes and tribes.

• Through the budget of 1980-81, the number of scholarships for backward, most backward, SC and ST students was increased from 2.5 lakhs to 5 lakhs and budgetary support was enhanced from 4.5 crores to 13.5 crores.

• An amount of Rs. 9 crores was earmarked for grant of Rs.30/- as monthly allowance to the children of the ‘mushhar’ caste to ensure their attendance in the primary schools.

• Through the budgetary provisions (1981-82), it was provided that the most backward class students would get the same benefits as was available to the scheduled caste students.

• Establishment of block and district level residential schools for SC and ST students; 4 middle schools in each blocks out of which one meant for girl students.

• Dedicated plan (1980-81) for the scheduled castes – ensuring 24% of budgetary allocation for them.

• In 1994, in the light of the Supreme Court decision, lent support to the creation of 27% quota for the backward classes in government jobs.

Miscellaneous

• Introduction of the Panchayati Raj in the entire state in 1980.

• Grant of central pay-scales to State Government employees.