Patna: Mounting an offensive against Bihar's Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Government, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today (Apr 10, 2004) accused it of having failed to discharge its primary duty to ensure safety and security of its citizens and blamed it for lack of development.

"The Bihar Government has failed in the discharge of its fundamental duties to ensure safety and security of its citizens. No industries are coming up, as they cannot flourish in an atmosphere of anarchy," he told an election meeting in Patna.

Elections 2004-The Drama unfolds...

"Hame shanti aur vikas chahiye, jungle raj nahin (We want peace and development and not the rule of the jungle), Vajpayee said.

After Bihar's bifurcation, he said, the Centre had approved schemes worth over Rs 47,000 crore to compensate it for the loss of resource-rich Jharkhand.

"But the Centre is not to blame for mis-utilisation or non-utilisation of funds we gave for development. Rs 300 crore of the Rs 600 crore we allocated to Bihar for rural roads remain unutilised.

"The Centre is prepared to give Bihar more, but for that the State Government would have to bring peace," he said.

"I remember a joke. A man had purchased a brand new car. The moment he left the showroom a few armed people walked up to him and said why are you taking the trouble to take the car home, let us help you. That was the last the man saw of his car. This situation is not conducive for growth."