Nitish Kumar asks education officials to create more posts of researchers at JRIPSPR

PATNA: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on Wednesday asked the education department officials to create more post of researchers in the Jagjivan Ram Institute of Parliamentary Studies and Political Research (JRIPSPR) to accelerate ongoing research works and allied academic activities in the government-run institute.

Addressing a gathering after inaugurating a new double-storeyed building of the JRIPSPR on its campus, the CM also asked institute director Shrikant to begin a research-based project for thorough documentation on the socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia-led anti-Congressism movement and LokNayak Jayaprakash Narayan-led 1974-movement.

Nitish said, years after the anti-Congressism call of Lohia, the Congress, for the first time, lost assembly elections in nine states in 1967. It was a big event in the electoral history of India. Again, at the call of Jayaprakash Narayan, the Congress lost the Lok Sabha election in 1977, within 30 years of country’s independence.

“But, there is complete dearth of good research works on these two movements that changed the India’s electoral pattern. This Institute should conduct thorough research on the two movements and come out with books and documentations,” Nitish said added the books must be in simple language so that common people could easily grasp the matter.

Stressing the need of conducting quality research work on various turning points in Indian politics during the pre and post-independence period, the CM further said that there should be a strong team of academics and experts with the institute director. “More posts should be created in the institute and there should be no bar on the upper age limit of experts to ensure appointment of genuine people having interest in research works,” Nitish said and asked the additional chief secretary R K Mahajan (on the dais) to take necessary steps to create required number of posts in the institute.

The CM also asked Mahajan to provide necessary fund at the disposal of the institute director so that he could make arrangements of at least snacks and tea for the visiting experts.

Speaking on the occasion, deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi advised the institute director to ensure collection of all books written on Bihar or related to Bihar at the institute. He also advised bringing out books on major turning points in the parliamentary history of Bihar.

State’s education minister Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma also addressee the function. Mahajan informed that the new building had been built at a cost of Rs 7.49 crore while another Rs 1.17 crore would be spent on furnishing different parts of the institute.