State PCS - Bihar (BPSC)

• 16 Jul 2025

Bihar Idea Festival

Why in News? 

The Bihar government launched the 'Bihar Idea Festival' portal to promote grassroots innovation and entrepreneurship.  

• The initiative invites students, youth, entrepreneurs, and startup teams—even from rural areas—to submit their ideas directly to the government.

Key Points 

• About the Bihar Idea Festival: 
  • The initiative aims to collect innovative ideas and practical solutions from across Bihar and offer a strong platform to support and scale them.  
    • The portal is mobile-friendly, making it easily accessible for people from remote and rural areas. 
  • The government plans to gather at least 10,000 ideas from all 38 districts of Bihar to ensure inclusive participation. 
  • A team of experts will assess the submitted ideas. At least 100 ideas will be shortlisted initially based on innovation and feasibility. 
  • Shortlisted participants will be eligible for technical and financial support, including seed funding of up to Rs 10 lakh under the Startup Bihar Policy. 
  • Winners of the Idea Festival will get a wild card entry to the seed funding pitch round.  
  • The initiative also aims to empower women entrepreneurs, enabling many to emerge as ‘Startup Didis’, inspired by the JEEViKA initiative. 
• JEEViKA:  
  • JEEViKA is the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project aimed at the social and economic empowerment of the rural poor in Bihar. It was launched in 2006. 
  • Managed by the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society (BRLPS), an autonomous body under the Department of Rural Development, Government of Bihar.  
  • Initially supported by the World Bank and later expanded to include the Livelihoods Restoration component of the Bihar Kosi Flood Recovery Project (BKFRP).  
  • The National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) has designated BRLPS as the State Rural Livelihoods Mission (SRLM) for Bihar to implement NRLM's strategies for poverty alleviation.

Bihar Start-up Policy 

• The state government launched the Bihar Start-up Policy in 2016 to build a transparent and independent start-up ecosystem through funding, promotion, and policy support.  
• It was later amended as the Bihar Start-up Policy 2017. 
• The state established a dedicated Start-up Trust with an initial corpus of Rs 500 crore, which serves as the nodal agency for the implementation of the policy. 
• Bihar Start-up Policy 2022: 
  • To make the ecosystem more inclusive and youth-centric, the government approved the Bihar Start-up Policy 2022.  
  • It aims to expand its reach, ensure faster execution, and position Bihar as a preferred start-up destination by tapping into the potential of local talent. 
  • Key Objectives: 
    • Foster inclusive growth by building a conducive environment for start-ups. 
    • Leverage local youth potential to drive innovation and entrepreneurship across the state. 
  • The government plans to: 
    • Develop new incubators and expand existing ones. 
    • Set up common infrastructure and co-working spaces to support start-ups across the state. 
  • To nurture an entrepreneurial mindset, the policy promotes: 
    • Entrepreneurship Development Centres (EDCs) and Entrepreneurship Facilitation Centres (EFCs). 
    • Integration of entrepreneurship education in schools, universities, MOOCs, and through internships.