March 1, 1951 Bhaktiarpur, Patna
Socialist
at heart and a politician of few words, Nitish Kumar is one of the honest faces
in Indian politics. He is considered as one of the best chief ministers in
India, transforming a state notorious for failing law and order situations and
caste wars, through successful governance. In the otherwise corrupt face of
Indian politics, Nithish Kumar is a man of intelligence, integrity and
commitment. His decision to resign as the railway minister in 1999, taking the
moral responsibility of a train accident that occurred in Gaisal which killed
200 people, became a gesticulation, long forgotten in Indian politics. Also
regarded as one of the best railway ministers India has got, he was
instrumental in bringing many ideas, which later became milestones in the
history of Indian railways.
Early Life
Nitish
Kumar was born in Bakhtiarpur in Bihar to a freedom fighter, Kaviraj Ram Lakhan
Singh and Parameshwari Devi on March 1, 1951. His father was a close associate
of Gandhian Bihar Vibhoothi, Anugrah Narayan Sinha who is known as the founder
of Modern Bihar. Nithish Kumar graduated from Bihar College of Engineering
(now, NIT Patna) in Electrical engineering. He was part of the Jayaprakash
Narayan's movement between 1974 and 1977 and was a close associate of Satyendra
Narayan Sinha who is the prominent leader of the time. In 1985, he was elected
to Bihar Legislative Assembly as an independent candidate. In 1987, he became
the president of the Yuva Lok Dal. In 1989, he was elected as the secretary
general of the Janata Dal party in Bihar. In the same year, he was elected to
the 9th Lok Sabha.
Career
In
1989, Nitish Kumar was elected as the Union Minister of State for Agriculture
in Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh's cabinet. In 1991, he was elected to
the Lok Sabha again and became the General Secretary of Janata Dal at the
national level and was honoured to be the deputy leader of the party in the
Parliament. He had a brief tenure as the Union Cabinet Minister for Railways
and Minister for Surface Transport and also as the minister for Agriculture
from 1998 - 1999. He had to resign following the Gaisal train tragedy in August
1999.
On
March 3, 2000, he was appointed as the Chief Minister of Bihar. However, it
lasted only for seven days as he could not prove the majority. Later that year,
he joined the Union Cabinet as Minister of Agriculture. From 2001 to 2004, he
served as the Minister for Railways in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee ministry. In
the Lok Sabha elections that were held in 2004, Nitish Kumar contested from
Nalanda and Barh. He was elected from Nalanda, but lost from Barh. In November
2005, he created history by leading the National Democratic Alliance to victory
in the Bihar Assembly elections thus ending the fifteen year old rule of Lalu
Prasad Yadav's Janatha Dal. On November 24, he was sworn in as the Chief
Minister of Bihar. In 2010, Nitish Kumar swept back to power with four - fifth
majority and became the Chief Minister of Bihar for the second consecutive
time.
Contributions To Politics
Nitish
Kumar's tenure as railway minister witnessed the implementation of innovative
ideas such as the introduction of railway internet ticket booking facility and
the opening of plenty of railway booking counters. He came about with the
innovative 'tatkal scheme' of booking and is considered to be the actual brain
behind the success of the otherwise bankrupt Indian railways. He made the
railways a profit making department and it was his ideas and policies which
were implemented by his successor, Mr. Lalu Prasad Yadav.
As
the Chief Minister of Bihar, Nithish Kumar implemented plenty of policies to
improve the infrastructure and lifestyle of the people in the otherwise
economically back ward state. Under his governance, Bihar received an
electronic version of the Right to Information Act. His government also
launched E-shakthi NREGS program which helped rural people to get information
about jobs through the telephone. His government did a crackdown of over 54,
000 criminals and gangsters who had strong links towards politics, thus
reducing crimes. He set up a fast track court that witnessed a record number of
criminal prosecutions in the state. The government also initiated a compulsory
meeting on weekly basis with district magistrates to keep a track of the
progress at the grass root level. Another prominent step taken by the
government was to provide employment opportunities in police service and
teaching. Nitish Kumar appointed one lakh school teachers to reform the
devastated educational system. Bihar also recorded quite a lot of construction
work exceeding even the national average. Nitish Kumar's government provided
bicycles to girls, which saw a huge increase in the number of girls receiving
school education and reduced the number of school drop-outs. For the first time
ever in the history of India, women and backward castes were given 50%
reservation in electoral. The government launched health schemes to improve the
condition of hospitals in villages and provided free medicine distribution
system. By improving national banks, loan schemes were provided for farmers. As
a result of Nithish Kumar's hard work and commitment, Bihar recorded a steep
rise in GSTP growth, this being the second highest in the country. The state
also became the highest tax paying state in eastern India. For another feather
in Nitish Kumar's cap, 2010 elections saw a high turnout of women and young
voters.
Legacy
Nitish
Kumar's left behind a great legacy in the way he changed the perception of the
so-called economically backward state of Bihar. He showed how charismatic and
good governance can bring about a huge transformation in a what was a neglected
state.
Awards And Accolades
Indian
of the Year by NDTV, 2010
India's Person of the Year by Forbes, 2010
Indian of the Year Award by CNN-IBN, 2010
Indian of the Year by NDTV, 2009
Business Reformer of the Year by Economic Times, 2009
Polio Eradication Championship Award by Rotary Internationals, 2009
Indian of the Year by CNN-IBN, 2008
The Best Chief Minister by CNN-IBN and HT State of the Nation Poll 2007
India's Person of the Year by Forbes, 2010
Indian of the Year Award by CNN-IBN, 2010
Indian of the Year by NDTV, 2009
Business Reformer of the Year by Economic Times, 2009
Polio Eradication Championship Award by Rotary Internationals, 2009
Indian of the Year by CNN-IBN, 2008
The Best Chief Minister by CNN-IBN and HT State of the Nation Poll 2007
Timeline
1951:
Born in Bakhtiarpur in Bihar.
1974 -1977 - Participated in Jayaprakash Narayan's movement.
1985 - Elected to Bihar Legislative Assembly as an independent candidate.
1987 - Became the President of the Yuva Lok Dal.
1989 - Elected as the Secretary General of the Janata Dal party in Bihar.
1989 - Elected to the 9th Lok Sabha.
1989 - Elected as the Union Minister of State for Agriculture in Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh's cabinet.
1991 - Became the General Secretary of Janata Dal at the national level.
1998 -1999 - Served as Union Cabinet Minister for Railways and Minister for Surface Transport.
1999 - Resigned following the Gaisal train tragedy in north eastern India.
2000 - Appointed as the Chief Minister of Bihar, lasted for only 7 days.
2001 - 2004 - Served as the Minister of Railways in the NDA government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
2005 - Sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar ending the fifteen year old rule of Lalu Prasad Yadav's Janatha Dal.
2010 - Sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for the second consecutive term.
1974 -1977 - Participated in Jayaprakash Narayan's movement.
1985 - Elected to Bihar Legislative Assembly as an independent candidate.
1987 - Became the President of the Yuva Lok Dal.
1989 - Elected as the Secretary General of the Janata Dal party in Bihar.
1989 - Elected to the 9th Lok Sabha.
1989 - Elected as the Union Minister of State for Agriculture in Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh's cabinet.
1991 - Became the General Secretary of Janata Dal at the national level.
1998 -1999 - Served as Union Cabinet Minister for Railways and Minister for Surface Transport.
1999 - Resigned following the Gaisal train tragedy in north eastern India.
2000 - Appointed as the Chief Minister of Bihar, lasted for only 7 days.
2001 - 2004 - Served as the Minister of Railways in the NDA government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
2005 - Sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar ending the fifteen year old rule of Lalu Prasad Yadav's Janatha Dal.
2010 - Sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for the second consecutive term.