Nov 1 will be the official birthday of the new states -- Advani

Nov 1 will be the official birthday of the new states -- Advani
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

NEW DELHI, AUGUST 11: Union Home Minister L K Advani today set a deadline of November 1 for the three new states of Jharkhand, Uttaranchal and Chhattisgarh to come into existence officially.

Replying to the debate on the bill for the creation of Jharkhand state in Rajya Sabha, Advani, while thanking the members for their cooperation in passing the three statehood bills smoothly, said he hoped all formalities such as Presidential assent and the official notification would be complete before November.

In response to the concern of members to the plight of Bihar sans the mineral-rich Jharkhand, Advani assured the House that a dedicated cell had been set up in the Planning Commission to ensure maximum financial help and adequate devolution of funds for the state's multi-faceted development, especially in the core infrastructure sector.

``This has been done for the first time,'' he said, adding the Government was keen on ensuring that the truncated Bihar did not lag behind in development. He also contended that the controversy over the Saraikela and Kharsawan areas in south Bihar could be sorted out between Jharkhand and Orissa after the former's creation. This was in response to persistent demands from members, particularly from Orissa, that these areas be returned to Orissa to offset a ``historic injustice''.

The Jharkhand Bill, already passed by the Lok Sabha, was passed by a voice vote in Rajya Sabha, making the Government fulfil its promise to carve three new states of Chhattisgarh, Uttaranchal and Jharkhand out of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar respectively. The bills for the creation of Chhattisgarh and Uttaranchal were approved by Parliament earlier this week.

Earlier, during the debate, RJD MP Ram Deo Bhandari demanded a special package of over Rs one lakh seventy-nine thousand crore for Bihar, waiving off central loan amounting to Rs 31,000 crore and an assistance of Rs one lakh crore for Jharkhand for building the infrastructure for the new state. Other MPs from Bihar expressed their unhappiness over the division of their state.