Bihar's Crisis of Governance: Education, Crime, Corruption, and the Failure of Accountability
- Sakshi Mishra
- 7 days ago
- 7 min read
Bihar, home to over 130 million people and one of India's most historically significant states, the land of Nalanda, Chandragupta Maurya, and Buddha, finds itself repeatedly in the news for all the wrong reasons. Decades of political mismanagement, a stubbornly low literacy rate, rampant corruption, and a rising tide of cybercrime have combined to make Bihar a cautionary tale of what unchecked governance failure looks like in the world's largest democracy. This article presents a data-driven, fact-based examination of Bihar's core systemic crises, drawing on court rulings, government data, academic research, and independent journalism. The chain of Bihar's dysfunction begins in the classroom, or rather, in the absence of one. Bihar's literacy rate stood at just 61.8 per cent as of the 2011 Census, significantly below the national average of 73 per cent. In 2016–17, the state recorded pass rates of just 55.4 per cent for Class X and 67.2 per cent for Class XII, alongside dropout rates of 39.7 per cent for Classes VIII to X. IJFMR By 2024, Bihar's estimated literacy rate was around 71 percent, still far behind the national average of 77.7 per cent, the lowest among all Indian states. Insightful. Female literacy in Bihar stands at just 66.1 per cent, meaning the state's non-participation in national literacy schemes disproportionately harms women's empowerment and workforce participation. Shankar IAS Parliament The quality of education, not just its access, is deeply compromised. Massive irregularity in the teacher selection process and rampant corruption have affected the quality of urban government schools. Rampant cheating is widespread, with students threatening teachers who attempt to prevent copying. Both the state and society appear unbothered by this situation, with sincere teachers often facing physical threats and politically influenced transfers. IPCS Given these educational conditions, most students finish their schooling having learned their first lessons in corruption and criminal politics. The entire educational system, critics argue, moulds individuals negatively, leading them to become part of a corrupt society, and a corrupt society can never pressure the state to provide good governance, which is exactly what the ruling elite across party lines prefers. IPCS In April 2016, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar imposed a total ban on alcohol in Bihar. Nine years later, the policy has generated as many problems as it sought to solve. Neighbouring states Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Nepal, none of which practice prohibition, have become major sources of alcohol smuggling into Bihar. The ban has made alcohol expensive and difficult to access for economically weaker communities, while those who can afford black-market prices continue to drink unhindered. The Quint. The scale of failure is staggering. In 2025 alone, Bihar police confiscated over 36 lakh litres of illegal liquor, 18.99 lakh litres of Indian-made foreign liquor and 17.39 lakh litres of country spirit. Arrests topped 1.25 lakh, up 3 per cent from 2024. Despite the crackdown, the illicit liquor trade remains very much alive. National Herald India
A government statement confirmed that since prohibition was imposed, officials had seized 30.86 million bulk litres of liquor, and over 900,000 cases had been registered under the prohibition laws, with more than 1.4 million people arrested. The Quint Most damning was the judicial verdict. The Patna High Court pronounced that the state's prohibition law had given rise to unauthorised trade of liquor and other contraband. The court noted that police, excise, tax, and transport department officials were found to be colluding with bootleggers, and that the law's "severe provisions have become convenient tools for the police." OpIndia
The court further noted that cases were overwhelmingly filed against poor people caught consuming liquor, while kingpins and syndicate operators faced few charges. Daily wage workers formed the majority of those imprisoned under the Act. OpIndia A total of 190 people lost their lives due to the consumption of illicit liquor in Bihar since prohibition was imposed, according to the state's Excise department as of April 2025. The Quint. Meanwhile, addiction to drugs, including cannabis, heroin, and adulterated substances, has risen alarmingly, as these are cheap and easily accessible substitutes. The Quint While Bihar is not the nation's single largest cybercrime hub by total numbers, it has seen one of the fastest escalations in digital crime in the country. Research based on publicly available data finds a remarkable rise in reported cyber fraud complaints in Bihar from approximately 42,000 in 2023 to more than 73,000 in 2024, with financial frauds such as banking scams, OTP theft, phishing attacks, and SIM swap schemes making up over 80 per cent of cases. Ijsrst
Compared to 2022, Bihar recorded a fourfold increase in cybercrime cases by 2024. By November 2025, over 5,572 additional cases had already been registered. Cybercriminals impersonate officials from agencies like the CBI or Enforcement Directorate, threatening victims with so-called "digital arrests" to extort money running into crores. Prokerala
In the 2024 NEET-UG paper leak scandal, Sanjiv Mukhia was identified as the key conspirator, accused of operating an inter-state "solver gang" that acquired and distributed examination papers before the actual tests. The CBI and Bihar Economic Offences Unit linked his network to accomplices across Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Punjab. He was also accused of involvement in paper leak cases in state-level exams, including BPSC teacher recruitment tests and the Bihar police constable examination. ETV Bharat
One particularly sophisticated Bihar-origin fraud involved criminals accessing digitised land records to extract victims' Aadhaar numbers and fingerprint data. They then cloned fingerprints using gelatin or polymer moulds to conduct Aadhaar-enabled payment system fraud, stealing money without a single phone call or OTP. Ijsrcseit Bihar is one of India's largest recipients of central government grants under the special category framework and various development schemes. Yet despite various government efforts, Bihar remains underdeveloped in critical areas, including infrastructure, healthcare, and education, with many rural areas still lacking adequate roads, electricity, hospitals, and schools. Wikipedia
Out of the 12 lakh jobs promised by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar under the 'Saat Nischay Part-2' scheme, only 5.16 lakh had been provided by 2024, mostly low-paying government positions with little broader economic impact. The lack of private sector employment means Bihar's youth continue to migrate to other states in large numbers, a trend unchanged after two decades of the same government. Insightful take. Between 2005 and 2024, the Bihar government approved investment proposals worth ₹75,293 crore, but actual realisation has been poor. In 2023–24, only ₹5,642 crore worth of new investments were registered, creating just 31,749 jobs, insufficient for a state of Bihar's size and labour force. Insightfultake
Corruption, political interference, and lack of accountability have hampered the effective implementation of education policies. Exam irregularities and controversies have further eroded public trust. IJFMR Bihar's political class carries significant responsibility for these crises. By 2004, The Economist had described Bihar as a "byword for the worst of India" with widespread poverty, corrupt politicians indistinguishable from mafia bosses, and a caste-ridden social order that retained the worst feudal cruelties. Wikipedia
Two decades on, while some improvements have occurred in law and order, the structural failures persist. Law and order problems, including caste-based violence, crime rates, and political intimidation, continue to affect public safety, and improving policing and justice systems remains a key unfulfilled election promise by competing parties across Bihar's political spectrum. Wikipedia Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, in 2024, switched political allegiances for the fifth time, leaving the Mahagathbandhan opposition alliance to rejoin the BJP-led NDA coalition. This is a pattern of political opportunism that observers say prioritises personal survival over consistent governance.
Bihar's challenges are deep-rooted but not insurmountable. Reform must be structural, sustained, and politically courageous:
On Education: Bihar must immediately increase per-student spending, enforce teacher attendance with accountability mechanisms, remove political interference from school administration, and prioritise female literacy at the primary level. The state must participate in national literacy schemes rather than using parallel programs as political shields.
On the Liquor Ban: Policymakers must honestly evaluate whether a blanket prohibition that has produced 1.4 million arrests, hundreds of hooch-related deaths, a thriving black market, and judicial criticism serves its stated public health goals. Evidence-based policy, such as regulated access, awareness campaigns, and addiction treatment, deserves serious consideration over enforcement-only approaches.
On Cybercrime: The state has taken some positive steps by opening 44 dedicated cyber police stations and training over 7,300 personnel. These must be expanded, better funded, and integrated with national agencies. Digital literacy programs must reach rural Bihar, where most victims reside.
On Corruption & Fund Utilisation: Bihar needs independent social audits for all centrally-funded schemes, mandatory public disclosure of project completion rates, and fast-track prosecution of officials found diverting development funds. RTI compliance must be enforced.
On Political Reform: Voters and civil society must demand criminal background checks for candidates, as provided for under Election Commission rules. Organisations like the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) already track criminal and financial backgrounds of candidates through self-declared affidavits to the Election Commission, MyNeta. These tools must be used more actively by Bihar's electorate.
Bihar is not a hopeless state. It is a state with immense human capital, a young population, a glorious intellectual heritage, and citizens who endure extraordinary hardship with remarkable resilience. The problem is not the people; it is the structural failure of governance, the low bar set by political leadership, and the cycle of undereducation that makes holding power accountable nearly impossible. The path forward requires what Bihar has always lacked: leaders who treat governance as a duty rather than an opportunity, and citizens empowered by education to demand nothing less.
This article is based on publicly available government data, court rulings, academic research, and independent journalism. All claims are supported by verifiable sources. The intent is accountability journalism in the public interest.
Important Note: This article raises systemic and structural concerns based on factual data. It does not target any individual community or religious group. The criticism is directed at governance systems and political practices, not the people of Bihar, who are among India's most resilient and hardworking citizens.
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