Kalyan Bigha and Phulwaria, a tale of two villages and their changing fortunes

Two villages basal retired arsenic the cynosure of each eyes among the 45,000 villages that dot Bihar’s predominantly agrarian scenery — Kalyan Bigha, and Phulwaria. Their improvement and maturation has matched the governmental fortunes of their celebrated sons. Incumbent Chief Minister Nitish Kumar hails from Kalyan Bigha successful Nalanda district. His predecessor and erstwhile CM Lalu Prasad hails from Phulwaria colony successful Gopalganj district.

Kalyan Bigha falls nether the Harnaut Assembly Constituency. Mr. Kumar’s two-storey factual location looks not dissimilar the galore specified houses seen successful the State superior oregon different towns. Steel handrails flank the fewer steps starring up to the entrance, with a statue of Lord Ganesha installed connected the beforehand wall. An energy metre is visible, and an air-conditioning vent fitted with an exhaust instrumentality is seen a metre away, connected the outer facade. Two achromatic h2o tanks are fixed atop the edifice.

The forecourt features a pond successful the shadiness of neat rows of trees connected each sides, with painted cement chairs, and an expansive temple astatine 1 end. Nearby are 2 parks. The archetypal is named aft Mr. Kumar’s father, the ‘Kaviraj Ramlakhan Singh Smriti Vaatika’, with busts of Mr. Kumar’s precocious parents and woman placed within; the different is well-equipped for children. Both were locked erstwhile this newsman visited. Outside Mr. Kumar’s ancestral location is simply a pucca concretised road, with a subdivision of the State Bank of India a fewer steps away.

Round-the-clock proviso of electricity, and thoroughfare lights, marque Kalyan Bigha the entity of envy successful other, little fortunate villages. Midway up a high, robust telephone operation is simply a vapour light. With a superior and higher secondary school, and respective different projects, Kalyan Bigha stands retired arsenic an land of amiable improvement successful the din of Bihar’s innumerable, dusty, and poverty-stricken lanes and bylanes. “My relatives respect and envy Kalyan Bigha erstwhile they visit,” Subodh Pandey, a middle-aged priest, said.

“Nitish Kumar-ji comes to Kalyan Bigha astatine slightest thrice a twelvemonth — connected November 29, January 1, and May 14 — to wage floral tributes to his begetter Ramlakhan babu, parent Parmeshwari Devi, and woman Manju Sinha connected their respective decease anniversaries,” Mr. Pandey, who claimed helium was Mr. Kumar’s household priest, said.

“My precocious father, Shambhu Pandey was besides the household clergyman for Mr. Kumar’s family,” helium said, performing the ‘Akshay Navmi’ puja for pistillate from the vilalge nether a gooseberry histrion extracurricular the Chief Minister’s location connected the aboriginal wintertime greeting of October 30.

“The colony contiguous has everything a bully municipality needs. However, earlier, earlier 2005, the concern was precise pitiable and pathetic here. We did not task retired adjacent during the time erstwhile the RJD was successful power,” Mr. Pandey said.

The acquainted look of sexagenarian Sitaram Singh, caretaker of Mr. Kumar’s location for galore years, was missing. “He is inactive live but presently idiosyncratic else, a young man, looks aft the house,” Mr. Pandey said, dilatory moving away, having finished the puja.

Kalyan Bigha present besides boasts an fantabulous roadworthy to Patna, a constabulary station, and a shooting scope for girls.

“Any travel that utilized to instrumentality 2.5 hours tin present beryllium completed successful 20 minutes,” Vikas Kumar, who grew up successful Kalyan Bigha, said. Now a qualified physician, Dr. Kumar returned 2 months agone to unfastened a tiny session adjacent the CM’s house.

The colony is dominated by Mr. Kumar’s ain Kurmi Other Backward Class (OBC) community, and the CM’s beingness is disposable everywhere. “Other little castes are besides successful the village, but we are each present for Nitish Kumar again arsenic the Chief Minister of Bihar,” a radical of young boys sitting connected a seat astatine the periphery of the pond said.

Mr. Kumar archetypal won from the Harnaut Assembly constituency successful 1985 connected a Lok Dal ticket. In the upcoming Assembly election, the JD(U)’s sitting MLA, Harinarayan Singh, is being fielded again from the spot — for the 10th time. “If helium wins the Assembly spot for the 10th time, helium volition acceptable a grounds successful Bihar,” Maheshwar Prasad, 59, said astatine marketplace successful Harnaut.

Mr. Singh is pitted against the Mahagathbandhan campaigner Arun Bind, portion the Jan Suraaj Party has nominated Kamlesh Paswan from the constituency. “The contention present is betwixt the JD(U) and Mahagathbandhan campaigner only,” Satish Singh, proprietor of a tiny concern successful the Nagarnausa locality, said with a smile.

Harnaut goes to the polls successful the archetypal signifier of the Bihar Assembly predetermination connected November 6.  

Phulwaria waits

About 20 km distant from Gopalganj municipality is the colony of Phulwaria, which falls nether the Hathua Assembly constituency. Former CM and Opposition RJD laminitis and supremo Lalu Prasad hails from Phulwaria.

Mr. Yadav’s palatial location successful Phulwaria has a immense forecourt, but the metalled roadworthy to the village, breached successful immoderate places, present has potholes, with overflowing drains. “The colony was deliberately neglected by the contiguous regime. When Lalu Prasad oregon his party, the RJD, was successful power, Phulwaria utilized to contiguous a antithetic representation — a representation of improvement and growth. We person had everything successful the village, from superior wellness centre to schools for children,” Prahalad Yadav, 32, a villager, said.

“Earlier, leaders of antithetic governmental parties, and journalists, adjacent from Delhi, would sojourn Phulwaria. We were and inactive are arrogant residents of the colony of Phulwaria successful Gopalgnaj, which is synonymous with our leader, Lalu Prasad-ji and his family,” Mr. Prahalad Yadav told this analogous implicit a telephone call.

When asked if the RJD leader’s household came to the colony these days, septuagenarian Sanyog Yadav and others successful a radical connected their mode to Gopalganj to bargain medicines, said they surely did. “Why not? They travel present whenever they get time. How tin anyone beryllium chopped disconnected from his roots?” a villager successful the radical said.

The RJD has fielded sitting MLA Rajesh Kumar Singh, who defeated the JD(U)’s Ramsewak Singh successful the 2020 Assembly election. Apart from members of the Yadav community, the guardant castes, Muslims, and Extremely Backward Class (EBC) voters are besides contiguous successful sizeable numbers successful the constituency.

“We volition repetition our sitting campaigner this time,” Shambhu Pandey, a villager, said connected a telephone call, adding, “It’s a prestige contented for Lalu Prasad, and Phulwaria’s sanction arsenic well.”

Hathua excessively goes to the polls successful the archetypal signifier of the Bihar Assembly predetermination connected November 6.