See All News by Ravish Kumar
Hello, I’m Ravish Kumar.
I have an idea for Bihar’s next government — an unusual one. Instead of pretending to stop migration, why not embrace it? Why not create a Ministry of Migration?
Sounds strange, right? But think about it.
Back in 2004, India created a separate department for Indians living abroad — the Ministry of Non-Resident Indians, later renamed Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, before being merged with the Ministry of External Affairs in 2016. If the Indian government can care for Indians abroad, then why can’t Bihar care for its own people living outside the state — its NRBs: Non-Resident Biharis?
Every Indian state has its share of Bihari workers. They build roads, run factories, clean cities, and power other states’ economies. Isn’t it time Bihar acknowledged their existence formally — with a dedicated ministry that tracks their welfare, ensures they live in humane conditions, and keeps in touch with them through offices in major cities like Delhi, Surat, or Ludhiana?
Critics will laugh. Some will say the government’s job is to stop migration, not support it.
But look at the reality — no government has ever managed to stop it. Not in 20 years. Even during Nitish Kumar’s so-called “golden years of law and order,” migration soared. Opportunities kept blooming outside Bihar, not within. People continued to leave — for survival, for dignity, for hope.
Migration, therefore, is not Bihar’s Plan B — it’s Plan A.
It’s the state’s most successful export.
And perhaps it’s time to give it the status of an industry.
Imagine this:
First-time migrants get a subsidized train ticket, a suitcase, and a bottle of water from the government.
Families returning home for Chhath or Holi get a travel subsidy — just like big industrialists get subsidies worth crores for setting up factories. If billionaires can get land at discounted prices, why can’t the poor get help to travel for work — their only “industry”?
Because let’s face it — migration is already Bihar’s largest economic activity.
During festivals, when over 1.5 crore people return home, the sheer chaos at railway stations tells the story no economic report can. If Bihar had a Migration Minister, they could plan better — create safe travel corridors, maintain worker registries, ensure safety and dignity, and monitor living conditions in host cities.
Look at how West Bengal’s Chief Minister once sent MPs to protect migrant workers in Gurugram.
If Bengal can care for its migrants, why can’t Bihar?
Bihar’s migrants live in makeshift colonies — often without clean water or toilets — across Indian cities. If the state government simply started tweeting photos of these settlements, the country would see the uncomfortable truth of how “development” really looks for those who build it.
So yes — Bihar needs a Ministry of Migration.
It needs to accept that migration isn’t a failure — it’s a symptom of a broken model.
Because after 20 years of good roads and electricity, why is there still no economic transformation?
Why is every young Bihari still dreaming of leaving home?
Why does the average Bihari student still have to move to Delhi, Kota, or Patna for education?
Why are the hospitals of Delhi and Lucknow filled with patients from Bihar?
Migration is not just about jobs. It’s about education, healthcare, hope, and dignity.
And while caste politics still dominates Bihar’s elections — keeping people divided over old loyalties — the economy remains stagnant. The poor from every caste remain poor. A few elites, contractors, and middlemen thrive, but the rest migrate.
It’s time Bihar starts talking about economic democratization — about land reform, quality education, and meaningful jobs. Because if a state can’t retain its youth, what kind of governance is that?
Until then, let’s stop the pretense.
Let’s recognize migration.
Let’s make it official.
Create a Migration ID Card, a Migration Police, and a Migration Budget.
Let’s treat the migrant not as a failure, but as Bihar’s most hardworking ambassador — a citizen who has built India city by city, brick by brick.
Migration is Bihar’s industry, enterprise, and opportunity.
It’s time the government accepts it — not as shame, but as reality.
So yes — let’s make it official.
Let’s have a Ministry of Migration.
Let’s stop migrating from the truth.
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