Patna: The state cabinet, at a meeting chaired by chief minister Samrat Choudhary on Wednesday, approved the conversion of 300 private BEd institutions into multidisciplinary degree colleges, allowing them to offer degree courses in various subjects alongside BEd education and training.The cabinet in total cleared 10 proposals at the meeting.The decision was taken in line with directions of National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) and the provisions of National Education Policy (NEP), 2020. According to the cabinet note, all 300 institutions are recognised by the NCTE.The colleges will be allowed to offer courses in arts, science, commerce and other disciplines, including programmes incorporating skill-development components. They will have to comply with the standards prescribed by their affiliating universities as well as the norms of the UGC, NCTE and the state govt.The move is aimed at improving access to higher education for students in their own districts and nearby areas, according to the cabinet note.The cabinet also approved extending the Student Credit Card (SCC) scheme from 2026-27 to 2030-31. It sanctioned Rs950 crore for disbursement under the scheme during 2026-27 to support students pursuing higher education.In another decision, the cabinet approved filling 50% of the seats in private industrial training institutes (ITIs) through candidates who qualify in entrance tests conducted by the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board (BCECEB).The cabinet also approved a proposal of the urban development and housing department for establishing compressed biogas (CBG) plants in the municipal corporations of Gaya, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur and Biharsharif.Under the proposal, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and GAIL will each be provided 10 acres of land free of cost in each of the four cities on a 25-year lease for setting up the plants.The CBG plants will use wet waste as feedstock, helping generate energy while also supporting scientific solid-waste management, according to the proposal.The cabinet approved the extension of the Kushal Yuva programme from 2026-27 to 2030-31 and sanctioned Rs430.08 crore for its implementation during 2026-27. The programme aims to train 2.57 lakh youths annually for employment, self-employment and other livelihood opportunities.The cabinet also approved the creation of 221 posts, including those of power executive engineer, assistant executive engineer and junior electrical engineer, under Bihar State Power Transmission Company Ltd (BSPTCL). The posts will be used to staff grid sub-centres and other offices as required under prescribed norms.
