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Ranchi: Taking a trip down memory lane, a day ahead of the 25 years of Jharkhand formation, the state’s first chief minister Babulal Marandi, recalled how he turned up as an unexpected candidate to lead the first govt of a newly formed state.Jharkhand was formed on Nov 15, 2000, coinciding with the birth anniversary of tribal icon Birsa Munda during the tenure of the then govt led by late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Marandi, who is currently the opposition leader, was a junior minister in the central cabinet before he was called to serve as the chief minister.In an exclusive interview with TOI on Friday, Marandi said, “I still remember very well that L K Advani ji had informed me the date for Jharkhand getting statehood.
I was very happy that he decided on Nov 15.”On how he was chosen to become the CM, he said, “I never thought that I would become the chief minister of Jharkhand. I remember that Advani ji had called all BJP MLAs to Delhi and spoke to everyone individually. I still don’t know the conversations that happened there because at that time, some leaders were senior to me, but I was chosen for the post.”Marandi further said he became sure that he would get the big job when he got a call from the PMO and was asked to meet then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
“I distinctly remember that day. When I met Vajpayee ji and he asked me to resign from the Union minister’s post and go to Jharkhand and work there (Resignation dijiye aur Jharkhand jaa ke kaam kijiye),” Marandi said, recalling the then-PM’s words.Asked about his feelings on the day of taking oath as the CM, he said, “I could not sleep that night.”Marandi also said he did not remember the first decision he took, but only recalled that he was very worried and was thinking of where he should begin since the state, which had just been carved out of Bihar, was plagued with a plethora of problems.The first CM also said there was a lot of apathy among people of this area (now Jharkhand). There used to be no representation from this area — the southern part of erstwhile undivided Bihar – and there used to be no acceptance of the people, he claimed.“The pain we carried in our hearts died with the formation of the new state,” Marandi said.On the current situation of Jharkhand, Marandi rued that the tribal population is still suffering with poverty and they should have been developed, skilled to become engineers, and trained for other good jobs.“The general law and order is not even okay here, even though the left-wing extremism is on the wane,” he said.“As the first CM, my efforts were to make sure that people get employment. I wanted good hospitals, transport systems, hotels, lodges, and institutions to strengthen the economy,” he claimed.On a double-engine govt, he said it is beneficial for equitable progress of the state in coordination with the Union govt.Taking a dig at the current administration, Marandi said, “The govt does not have any vision. Small-scale enterprises are shutting down and people are moving out to places like Pune, Bangalore and New Delhi. The govt should think about generating employment. There should be a development roadmap.”He further said, “My path or roadmap was good as it led to development…and if that had been followed, then at least 25,000 tribal students could have got technical education in the last 25 years.
I had started a programme for students pursuing technical education outside the state to pay for their tuition fees. It doesn’t exist now.”Marandi also stressed that the need of the hour for Jharkhand is good institutes, healthcare centres and growth in business to make the economy robust. “What would I do if I got another chance as the CM? I would resume all people-centric schemes,” he signed off.
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