Bihar in a freebie trap

Bihar’s 2025 elections are shaping up as a decisive moment for the state’s future. Once again, the political narrative is dominated by promises of cash transfers, subsidies, and giveaways. It’s being interpreted as bribe as well. Yet, beneath the loud talk of welfare lies an uneasy truth —Bihar’s real problems remain unsolved.

- Shivaji Sarkar

ihar’s 2025 elections are shaping up as a decisive moment for the state’s future. Once again, the political narrative is dominated by promises of cash transfers, subsidies, and giveaways. It’s being interpreted as bribe as well. Yet, beneath the loud talk of welfare lies an uneasy truth —Bihar’s real problems remain unsolved.

Unemployment is high, industries are scarce, and migration continues unchecked, the World Bank mentions in its various reports. Young graduates, unable to find work at home, still board trains to Delhi and Mumbai in search of livelihood. The state’s growth story has stalled because politics has been reduced to short-term appeasement rather than long-term planning.

If Bihar is to break free from this cycle, political parties must shift focus — from freebies to factories, from subsidies to skills, and from caste to capital. A difficult job in an adverse situation. Every election, Bihar’s leaders announce giveaways that sound generous but come with a heavy cost. Subsidies for electricity, farm loans, or direct cash transfers may provide relief — but they do not build capacity. The state’s dependency on central grants and outmigration continues because its political imagination has stalled.