Bihar Cabinet Approves Decision to Raise ₹4,750 Crore World Bank Aid for Urban Development

Patna, May 7: The Bihar cabinet approved raising ₹4,750 crore from the World Bank for urban development projects. The cabinet also sanctioned ₹15,967.03 crore for road maintenance and approved collecting road user fees, along with plans for electric bus procurement and AI training.

Urban Development and Road Maintenance

The Bihar Urban Transformation Programme aims to strengthen the economic base of select cities through planned urban development with focus on long-term and environment-sensitive growth. The proposal was moved by the urban development and housing department.

The cabinet granted administrative sanction of ₹15,967.03 crore to the road construction department for inspection, monitoring and maintenance of 19,305.58 km of roads over seven years. The work will be carried out using a centralised command and control system and new technologies including artificial intelligence (AI).

Electric Buses and Infrastructure

The transport department's revised estimate of ₹517.16 crore for procurement of 400 electric AC buses was approved. The buses will be deployed across six cities - 150 in Patna and 50 each in Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Gaya, Darbhanga and Purnia.

The cabinet approved the RCD's proposal to collect road user fees on state highways, key bridges and other major roads. It also cleared transfer of 1.85 acres of BIADA land near Patna airport to AAI for airport-related infrastructure development.

Other Key Decisions

The cabinet extended the Bihar Industrial Investment Incentive Package, 2025, till June 30, 2026, in view of investor interest. Approval was also given for an AI training programme for legislators, government officials and employees. Three anti-erosion projects in Bhojpur, Saran and Vaishali districts were approved, along with extension of MoU between BIT Mesra and the state's science and technology department till December 16, 2030.