Nitish Kumar seeks Rs 8,200 crore under BRGF from FM Arun Jaitley

NEW DELHI: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today requested Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to release the remaining Rs 8,200 crore fund committed as part of Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) under 12th Five Year Plan.

"The government had committed Rs 12,000 crore additional resources for identified sector primarily in power and some road projects," Kumar said after meeting Jaitley here.

"12th five year plan is coming to an end next fiscal but we have got only one-third of the committed fund so far. I came here to request finance minister that remaining funds could be released this fiscal and next fiscal," he said.

The 5-year plan would come to an end in March 2017.

Kumar said the State has spent more than what it got from the Centre in the power sector.

"This is well know fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced special package. It was also made clear that the State would get Rs 8,200 crore under BRGF during current and next fiscal," he said.

"So I came with the request that the government had committed, NITI Aayog also endorsed this and it was also made part of special package. I hope that the government will release committed funds which were announced earlier," he said.

The Cabinet had approved Rs 12,000 crore as special plan for Bihar under the BRGF in 2013.

During the poll campaign last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a Rs 1.25 lakh crore economic package for Bihar.