The Bihar government approved a “purchase preference policy” on Tuesday to promote native or state-based manufacturers and service providers.

A decision in this regard was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Nitish Kumar and the policy could have a far-reaching impact with regard to industrialisation, setting up of firms and employment generation.

“The Bihar Purchase Preference Policy, 2024, will favour the manufacturing firms and service providers based in the state in procurement and supply. If such companies bid within 15 per cent margin of the L1 or lowest rates in procurement bids, they will be given 25 per cent of the order on L1 rates,” cabinet secretariat department additional chief secretary S. Siddharth said.

This policy, which was a part of 36 agendas taken up by the cabinet, has defined local companies and local purchases. A company would be called local if it is registered in Bihar and has a production facility or operations in the state.

“The company should have been established at least a year before the procurement bid date, should have paid GST and filed returns, and should have at least 50 per cent
workers or employees from Bihar. This policy will benefit the companies operating in the state and attract those who want to set up manufacturing units here,” Siddharth added.

Another salient feature of the policy is that it mandates 20 per cent material procurement in construction works from companies based in Bihar. The encouragement provided to the firms would also help generate employment in Bihar, which is known for heavy migration to other states in search of work.

Among the other agendas approved by the cabinet, one is about the revival of the
toy train at the Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park, popularly known as the Patna zoo, with the help of the East Central Railway at a cost of around ₹10 crore.

The toy train will have four coaches. The facility, along with its 3.7km tracks, was functional between 1977 and 2015, but became defunct due to snags and poor maintenance.

The Nitish-led cabinet also approved the Mukhyamantri Home Stay/ Bread and Breakfast Promotion Policy, 2024, to promote accommodation facilities for tourists by roping in private houses.

Those wanting to avail the facility and develop homestays at their houses will have to register with the tourism department, as well as abide by the regulations and standards decided for them.

The state government will help house owners who want to renovate and refurbish their buildings for the purpose by providing up to ₹2.5 lakh on the interest on the loans taken by them. They could create accommodation for tourists from one to six rooms, having two to 12 beds.

In another decision, the cabinet has authorised the transport department to form a committee chaired by its principal secretary to determine the speed limits for various roads in the state, including the national highways. It will help minimise accidents due to over-speeding.

The state government has also come out with a policy to reward people who give tip-off about illegal mining of minerals in the state. They would be given ₹ 5,000 to ₹ 10,000 depending on the size of the vehicles seized, and their identity would be kept secret.

Aiming to streamline and improve the functioning of Har Ghar Nal Ka Jal (tap water for every household) scheme, the cabinet approved the plan to transfer 70,157 water supply schemes of the panchayati raj department in 58,003 rural wards to the
public health engineering department (PHED), which will operate, maintain and repair them.

“The cabinet approved the ₹3,611 crore plan under which the PHED will be given ₹1.08 lakh per water supply scheme per year to operate, repair and maintain it for five years,” Siddharth said.

One of the pet projects of Nitish, the water supply scheme has been notoriously non-functional in villages due to varied reasons including corruption, poor quality and maintenance.