Bihar CM Nitish Kumar begins 17th ‘Samriddhi Yatra’ from Bettiah to review development projects, administrative efficiency, and progress schemes.

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is set to begin his next yatra on Friday from Bettiah in West Champaran district, north Bihar. This will mark his 17th yatra overall and 15th as Chief Minister.

After his party, JD (U), together with its allies like BJP and other small parties, registered a landslide victory in the recent assembly election, Nitish’s Yatra, called the “Samriddhi Yatra,” in the midst of a bitterly cold winter, demonstrates his priority to further tone up the administrative machinery to match people’s expectations. He will examine the projects completed during his Pragati Yatra and Saat Nischay (Seven Resolves).

Between December 2024 and February 2025, Nitish announced development projects totaling about Rs 50,000 crore during his Pragati Yatra. The funding and execution of these programs have been approved by the Bihar Cabinet. 428 of the 430 projects that were initially listed have been approved by the department.

After winning an absolute majority in the most recent state elections, JD (U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar stated that the NDA administration has a significant task ahead of it in terms of fulfilling public expectations. He stated that the chief minister would assess how different development plans were being carried out and lay the groundwork for initiatives that would be essential to Bihar’s growth.

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However, RJD spokesperson Ejaz Ahmed claimed that the CM was doing the Yatra in order to lessen the pressure from the BJP. He suggested that Aurangabad, where a bridge just collapsed, should have been the starting point of the yatra rather than Champaran.

Under many aliases, Nitish Kumar has been leading yatras. The yatra is called Samriddhi this time. However, is he referring to his party’s prosperity or his own? The prosperity of the people of Bihar is not related to him. He said, “This is his attempt to maintain his political position.”

Political analyst Indrajit Singh, meanwhile, claimed that Nitish had once again chosen to visit the field to learn how well the administrative apparatus was carrying out several development initiatives.