AK Srivastava
The year 2025 proved to be an important and decisive one for the state of Jharkhand. While it brought new possibilities for development on one hand, several long-standing problems continued to pose serious challenges on the other side. For a state as rich in natural resources like Jharkhand, it is essential to make an objective assessment of achievements and shortcomings every year, so that future development strategies can be made more effective.
In 2025, Jharkhand made commendable progress in the field of infrastructure. Improvements were seen in road construction, rural connectivity, and urban traffic systems. Several national and state highways were expanded, benefiting trade, transportation, and the general public.
The industrial sector also presented mixed but overall positive signals during the year,along with major industries such as Tata Steel, SAIL, and NTPC, several new investment proposals emerged. This helped generate direct and indirect employment opportunities. The state government made efforts to implement industry-friendly policies, which to some extent boosted investors confidence.
In the field of education, initiatives were taken to promote digital learning, scholarship schemes, and increased school enrollment. In healthcare, schemes such as Ayushman Bharat, strengthening of rural health centers, and free medicine programs provided relief to the common people.
Alongside these achievements, several serious issues continued to challenge Jharkhand in 2025. Unemployment remained the biggest concern. Due to the lack of adequate employment opportunities for local youth, migration continued to rise, especially from tribal and rural areas.
The pace of overall development of the tribal community did not meet expectations. Issues such as the quality of education, lack of higher education institutions, and shortage of technical training opportunities persisted. Access to healthcare services remained limited in remote areas, and many government schemes failed to achieve full effectiveness at the grassroots level.
Law and order, corruption, and administrative inefficiency were also areas where expected improvements were not achieved. Many schemes remained confined to paperwork, and a lack of transparency was observed in their implementation.
For the coming year, the most pressing need for Jharkhand is employment generation. Along with large industries, small and cottage industries, startups, and self-employment must be actively promoted. Connecting local youth with skill development, technical training, and entrepreneurship is the need of the hour.
Education and healthcare must be placed at the center of development. Special attention should be given to improving the quality of government schools and colleges, appointing teachers, and expanding digital resources. In the healthcare sector, strengthening primary health centers and ensuring the availability of specialist services is essential.
For tribal and backward regions, honest and effective implementation of special development schemes is necessary. The exploitation of natural resources should be carried out in such a way that local communities receive direct benefits while maintaining environmental balance.
Jharkhand’s real progress is possible only when development is inclusive. The government, industry, society, and the general public must work together for the state’s future. With transparent administration, accountability, public participation, and a long-term development vision, Jharkhand can establish its identity as a prosperous, self-reliant, and developed state. If lessons from the experiences of 2025 are translated into concrete policies and plans, the coming year can certainly write a new chapter in Jharkhand’s development story.
In the past year, the Jharkhand government approved the PESA Act. I am confident that its rules and regulations will be framed in such a way that there will be no shortfall in achieving its objectives. Considering various circumstances, the Jharkhand government entrusted XLRI, Jamshedpur, with the responsibility of preparing an updated industrial policy, which is a highly commendable and praiseworthy step. Jharkhand is a state rich in minerals, yet their full potential has not been utilized. Many mines remain closed, and several leases have not been renewed. If positive action is taken in this direction, the state will receive substantial revenue, and rural youth will not be compelled to migrate. In reality, mineral and forest resources are located in rural areas; therefore, village youth can work and continue to live in their villages. This will lead to significant improvement in the rural economy. Majority of steel plant is located in state of Jharkhand at the same time steel industry on facing a challenge to increase it’s profit and make it competitive in international market keeping it’s quality and price. But steel dumping policy of China has created a new challenge. Of course the government of India has given some relief in shape of antidumping duty and is also in process of giving reasonable relief more emphasis is needed for increasing in concussion of steel in rural and construction industries.
(Author is Entrepreneur and Consultant, Jamshedpur Citizen Forum. Views are personal.)
