Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary and Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi jointly inaugurated Tech Hub in Bihta near Patna. Photo: Aftab Alam Siddiqui
By Alok Mohit
Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary on Tuesday reiterated his government’s commitment to fulfilling the aspirations of the people and realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former chief minister Nitish Kumar’s vision of a “developed Bihar”. The chief minister was speaking after jointly inaugurating with Union MSME minister Jitan Ram Manjhi a newly constructed technology centre in Bihta, near Patna, and four extension centres in Muzaffarpur, Rohtas, Darbhanga and Munger.
The facilities, set up by the Union ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), aim to strengthen skill development and industrial growth in Bihar.
Describing the occasion as “historic,” Samrat Choudhary said Bihar’s industrial base had weakened after the state’s bifurcation in 2000. He credited National Democratic Alliance (NDA) governments at the Centre and in the state with reviving development since 2005 and said the new centres would play a key role in empowering youth with industry-relevant skills.
Spread across 15 acres, the Technology Centre at Sikandarpur in Bihta will offer advanced training, including diploma and degree programmes, focusing on product quality, packaging and global marketing.
Highlighting Bihar’s demographic strength of nearly 14 crore people, the chief minister said the initiative would open up employment avenues while also encouraging entrepreneurship. Beneficiaries under schemes such as PM Vishwakarma, PMEGP and the National SC/ST Hub were also provided financial assistance, toolkits and certificates during the programme.
Choudhary said the state would seek approval for 10 more technology centres and said Rs 200 crore had been sanctioned for an Artificial Intelligence research centre at IIT Bihta. Stressing the importance of industrialisation, he said the government aimed to attract investments worth Rs 5 lakh crore and generate employment for one crore people.
In his address, Manji appreciated the “commendable efforts” of the Union Ministry of MSME in establishing the Technology Centre and its extension centres in Bihar and said these initiatives would significantly contribute to the state’s growth and development.
Later, Choudhary and Manjhi interacted with exhibitors of National SC/ST Hub, PM Vishwakarma, PMEGP who have displayed their products in exhibition organised at the Technology Centre.
Dr. Rajneesh, additional secretary and development commissioner, Union ministry of MSME, provided a comprehensive overview of various schemes of the ministry, as well as Technology Centres and extension centres.
About the Author
Alok Mohit is a senior journalist based in Patna with decades of experience in mainstream journalism. He has previously served as Senior News Editor at Hindustan Times, Patna, and later at Hindustan Times, Chandigarh, where he played a key role in shaping news coverage and editorial direction. Known for his in-depth understanding of socio-political issues and strong editorial judgement, he continues to contribute insightful analysis and reporting on matters of public interest.
About the Author
