Bihar Assembly Elections: Migration and unemployment emerge as key issues

With Bihar gearing up for Assembly elections later this year, issues like youth unemployment and migration are taking center stage, shaping the political debate across the state.

Many Biharis, who migrated to Delhi say they are forced to leave their home state due to a lack of job opportunities, poor quality education for their children, and limited industrial and infrastructural development.

According to Nityanand, a Migrant from Bihar, "The issue is that wherever we go, the politicians from that state accuse us of coming from Bihar and settling there. So we ask, why are jobs not available in Bihar so that we can work there only? This is our main issue.."

Meanwhile, Murlidhar Jha, another migrant from Bihar, says, "The main reason that we live in Delhi is that, first of all, there is unemployment in Bihar. Another is that the education there is in very poor condition – no one pays attention to education, no matter which party is in power. The quality of education in Bihar has been completely destroyed. So people come here for two main reasons – one is that there is no employment there, and secondly, children do not get proper education."

Many Biharis would prefer to remain in their state if problems like industrial development, job creation, and high-quality education were adequately addressed.

"We belong to the labour class. Bihar should have industries that provide employment. Our children should get proper education. We want to stay at home with our families," explains Upendra Paswan, a migrant from Bihar.

Meanwhile, the opposition has highlighted unemployment as a major concern and says it will be a key plank of their election campaign.

According to the Congress MP Ranjeet Ranjan, "The youth there are unemployed, even after education, they remain unemployed. There home state is not able to provide them jobs. This is the main issue, which Rahul Gandhi Ji has consistently raised, saying ‘Palayan Roko Naukri Do’ (Stop migration, give jobs). We hosted a Naukri Mela (employment fair) which saw the participation of lakhs of youth, which showed how many educated youth are there in Bihar who do not have jobs. I believe that some of the most important issues in Bihar are education and migration."

The BJP, however, accuses the opposition of ignoring the state’s development when it was in power and says it is focused on holistic growth benefiting all.

"Women used to cook food on wood-fired stoves; their eyes would burn from the smoke and they would get sweaty. They would eat half-cooked food. They could not even eat proper food. Who saw that Bihar and more importantly, who was responsible for that Bihar? Aren't they the ones who are now taking out rallies? It was their government in power..", Senior BJP Leader, Hukumdev Narayan Yadav said.

BJP ally LJP says it has a clear vision to tackle migration and unemployment and is ready to implement it when the opportunity arises.

LJP Ramvilas MP Arun Bharati explains, "We have a vision and roadmap to address unemployment and migration. Once we are in a position to implement policies, we will take necessary action to generate jobs and reduce migration. We aim to industrialise Bihar and set up industries across the state."

As the Bihar Assembly polls approach, migration and unemployment are set to remain decisive issues for many voters.