Nitish, ministers assets made public

PATNA: Chief Minister Nitish Kumar lags far behind his ministerial colleagues in his wealth, details of which were made public today.

Details of the assets of 30 Bihar ministers, including Kumar's were uploaded in the government websites as a step towards ending corruption and promised by the chief minister.

Kumar's moveable assets include Rs 31,760 in cash, Rs 57,770 in bank account, a Santro car of 2003 model, an old TV set, an old airconditioner, a fridge, a cooler and cows worth Rs 1.67 lakh.

The list of his assets also included a computer worth Rs 34,475, a treadmill of Rs 35,000 and a house in Sansad Vihar in New Delhi presently valued at Rs 40 lakh. He has a loan of Rs 1.93 lakh from the secretariat branch of State Bank of India.

Kumar's son Nishant owns Rs 1,769 in cash, a bank deposit of around Rs 41 lakh, Rs 13.93 lakh in post office schemes, jewellery worth Rs 9.20 lakh and agricultural land worth Rs 31.34 lakh at Kalyanbigha, besides a building in Kankerbagh in Patna. He is also the owner of a residential/commercial building at Kalyanbigha worth Rs 1.31 lakh and in Bakhtiyarpur worth Rs 8.27 lakh.

Deputy Chief Minister S K Modi has around Rs 26,000 cash, Rs 10.56 lakh deposit in banks, Rs 1.83 lakh in bonds-shares, LIC/NSC worth Rs 1.89 lakh, jewellery worth Rs 1.52 lakh, a Maruti Swift besides other property worth Rs 5.26 lakh.

He and his wife have jointly invested Rs 14.49 lakh in a house at Ghaziabad and Rs 36.7 lakh in another house at Gautam Buddha Nagar in Uttar Pradesh.

Modi has a loan of Rs 40 lakh from ICICI Bank in New Delhi, besides a government debt of Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 10.70 lakh from his relatives.

His wife and sons own jewellery worth Rs 6.84 lakh, Rs 9400 in cash, Rs 14.91 lakh cash in bank and NSC and other certificates valued at Rs 5.28 lakh.

The richest member in Bihar ministry is Human Resources Department Minister Prashant Kumar Shahi, a lawyer-turned advocate general-turned minister, who has declared moveable and immoveable properties worth around Rs 4.5 crore.

State Labour Resources Minister Janardan Singh Sigriwal with a net worth of Rs 16.77 lakh is the poorest minister.