Voting has begun in Bihar, India’s third most populous and poorest state, where the main concern for many of its 130 million residents is economic survival. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is hoping to win over voters with financial incentives and development projects to secure full control of the state government.
For residents like Rajkumari Devi, a housewife in Muzaffarpur, feeding her three children depends on her husband’s daily wage of 400–500 rupees (around $5), which is often inconsistent. “There is no stability. Some days he doesn’t get work, so we stretch the little money we have,” she said.
Despite being India’s poorest state in terms of GDP per capita and poverty levels, Bihar has made some progress. The proportion of people experiencing multidimensional poverty—lacking health, education, and basic living standards—fell from over 50% in 2016 to about a third in 2021.
The BJP, in alliance with Bihar’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s party, faces stiff competition from the opposition led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress party.
Political analysts say the outcome of the Bihar election could shape BJP’s prospects in other key states, including West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. Ultimately, the results will hinge on which party voters trust to secure jobs and improve livelihoods in a state long associated with unemployment and economic hardship.
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