Bihar govt committed to help people stuck outside Bihar: Nitish Kumar

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday held a review meeting on redressing the problems being faced by the people of Bihar stranded outside the state.

Kumar also reviewed the measures being taken to resolve the difficulties of those who have either come to Bihar from abroad or from different parts of the country, an official release said.

Disaster Management Departments Principal Secretary Pratyaya Amrit informed the chief minister that a total of 1,80,652 people have come to the state from outside so far.

Screening of these people are on they are being closely monitored, he said.

Relief camps have been opened in border areas of the state and arrangements have been made to provide them with food and accommodation facilities, Amrit said.

The CM's Principal Secretary Chanchal Kumar said those who are stuck outside Bihar have been contacted to know the problems they are facing and the facilities they have received. Their problems are being redressed after getting their feedback, he said.

Kumar asked officials to increase the number of relief camps, if needed, being run in the state capital for labourers.

The problems being faced by those stuck outside Bihar should be resolved at the earliest on the basis of their feedback, the CM said.

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The chief minister also appealed to those stranded outside the state due to the lockdown to stay wherever they are.

The state government had decided to remit Rs 1,000 to all the ration card holders in view of the lockdown enforced due to the Coronavirus outbreak, Kumar said and asked officials to transfer the money at the earliest in the bank account of the beneficiaries.

The number of coronavirus cases in Bihar rose to 21 as five more people tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, officials said adding that one of them died on March 21.

Meanwhile, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi contributed Rs 3.18 crore from his "Mukhyamantri Kshetra Vikas Yojana" to the Coronavirus eradication fund formed in the state, according to an official statement.

The "Mukhyamantri Kshetra Vikas Yojana" is a modified version of the legislators local area development fund under which all MLAs and MLCs can recommend projects.

The Rs 3.18 crore also included a sum of Rs 50 lakh to be given to the eradication fund from local area development fund as per the state governments decision in this regard, the statement said.

The chief minister had on March 28 contributed Rs 7 crore to the fund.

Earlier, prominent leaders of Bihar such as Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Tejashwi Prasad Yadav have donated varying amounts to the fund during the past one week.

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