Cool Bihari: Friends of Bihar(FOB)

Expatriates play friend in bank's US office

AKSHAYA MUKUL

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ TUESDAY, AUGUST 02, 2005 02:26:41 AM ]

NEW DELHI: For an institution used only to 'performance' and 'reform', the World Bank's report on Bihar would be a cathartic experience.

Why Bihar? What can it offer to bank in terms of reforms and performance?

The idea to help emanated from an almost-feudal belief that if Bihar cannot help itself, let the Bank help the state.

A similar belief is behind helping other poor states like UP, Jharkhand and Orissa. How far sympathy gets translated into action would be known only later.

What makes the Bihar initiative unique is the role of Bihari expatriates in the bank's Washington office. An informal group called 'Friends of Bihar' (FOB) pushed the state's case even as the Bank's Country Assistance Survey (2005-08) was talking of engaging non-performing states. The FOB was initiated by Ajaz Ghani, a senior staffer in Washington.

I guess this just shows how important it is for all of us to be aware of our individual responsibilities as an individual citizens.

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