The Congress on Monday sought to know what Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is doing about the demand for special category status for the state and asserted that "he should strike" as he is in a position to get this done now.

The Opposition party's remarks come after Bihar ministers claimed that the latest report of NITI Aayog's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index 2023-24 vindicated the state's long-standing demand for greater central financial assistance.

On July 12, NITI Aayog released the SDG India Index 2023-24 -- an assessment of the country's sustainable development. Bihar has figured at the bottom of the index despite improvements on some parameters.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said senior ministers in Bihar are now arguing that NITI Aayog's latest analysis vindicates their demand for special category status in the matter of Central assistance to the state.

"Basically this would mean that instead of 70 per cent of such assistance being as a loan, only 10 per cent would be," Ramesh said.

"But instead of giving press statements and passing resolutions in party meetings, what is the Bihar CM (Nitish Kumar) doing about this demand? He has talked and talked and talked while doing nothing about it," the Congress leader said in a post on 'X'.

Ramesh also said, "He (Kumar) is in a position to get it done now. He should strike. The same goes for the Andhra Chief Minister (N Chandrababu Naidu) as well." Commenting on NITI Aayog's latest SDG Index, senior JD(U) leader and Bihar Water Resources Minister, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, has said, "The latest report of Aayog has vindicated our long-standing demand for greater central financial assistance." "This is the reason why we have been asking for special category status (SCS) or a special package for Bihar which is managing its finances on its own. But Bihar comes among the poorest states in the country." "Bihar is the most deserving state that needs special financial assistance from the Centre. The economy of Bihar is one of the fastest-growing in India. Bihar has not only grown consistently but also outperformed even the most developed states," Chaudhary had said.

Echoing a similar view, Bihar Rural Development Minister and JD(U) leader Shrawan Kumar has said, "The Central government should announce a special package or special status to Bihar without any delay. The NDA government in the state, under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, is committed to the overall development of Bihar." The SDG India Index computes goal-wise scores on the 16 SDGs for each state and Union Territory. Overall state and Union Territory scores or composite scores are generated from goal-wise scores to measure the aggregate performance of the sub-national unit based on its performance across the 16 SDGs.

These scores range between 0-100, and if a state/Union Territory achieves a score of 100, it signifies it has achieved the targets. The higher the score of a state/UT, the greater the distance covered to the target.

In the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP with 240 seats fell short of a majority but the NDA secured the mandate with 293 seats. Nitish Kumar's JD(U) and Naidu's TDP are key partners of the NDA grouping.

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