Patna diary

Nitish hoists national flag for a record 15th time
Hoisting the national flag on Independence Day, seventy-year-old Nitish Kumar became the first Chief Minister of Bihar to do so for the 15th time. The previous record of 14 times was held by Bihar’s first CM Sri Krishna Sinha. Sanjay K Jha-minister of Information & Public Relation Department (IPRD) said, “In the last 5474 days, Nitish Kumar has anchored and engineered empowerment of the marginalised, given voice to the voiceless and might to the meek”.  Jha said that Kumar has ensured ‘development with justice’ to all.

Women, girls to get priority in Khadi skilling missions 
Bihar State Khadi Village Industries Board (BSKVIB) will give priority in skilling missions to women who have lost their husbands, and girls who have lost their fathers to the Covid-19 pandemic through newly opened training centres. The programmes under the missions include embroidery, sewing, yarn-spinning and tailoring. Bihar Industry Minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain after inaugurating one such training centre in Patna, Bihar, said: “In all the training centres run by the BSKVIB, priority will be given to such women and girls.” He said that 43 ‘Silae-Katae’ (Sewing-Cutting) khadi and silk yarn spinning training centres will be opened to impart one to three-month training for the women and girls in the state of Bihar.

Boat Ambulance for vax drive, medical emergency
At a time when Bihar’s 26 districts are reeling under floods, Boat Ambulances have been pressed into services for vaccinations and medical emergencies. Seven boats have been brought to the flooded areas of Patna.  Dr. Chandra Shekhar Singh, the DM of Patna, said that a Boat each has been allotted to every flood-affected block from Maner to Mokama. In other flood-affected districts like Khagaria, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur and Vaishali, the boats are also providing medical support to pregnant women.

Free ride for women and girls on Rakshabandhan
Patna’s women and girls to get a free ride on Rakshabandhan day in the government-owned city buses as a  goodwill gesture of the state transport department. It is estimated that nearly 1 lakh women and girls will avail the facility on August 22. Transport secretary Sanjay K Aggarwal said, “A total of 125 city service buses, including 70 CNG and 14 electric buses are being operated by the Bihar State Road Transport Corporation in Patna. The women and girls can travel for free on August 22 within the city”. In almost all buses, CCTV cameras have been installed in addition to other facilities for the safety of women.

Rajesh K Thakur
Our correspondent in Bihar
rkthajipur@gmail.com