How Bihar is governed

If you are preparing for BPSC, you are preparing to join the administration described in this guide — as an SDO (Senior Deputy Collector), a DSP, a BDO, a Revenue Officer or another officer. Understanding the structure of Bihar's government helps in the GS paper and, just as much, in the interview, where you may be asked what your chosen post actually involves.

The constitutional framework

Like other states, Bihar is governed under Part VI of the Constitution (Articles 152–237).

The Governor

• Appointed by the President (Article 155); the constitutional head of the state.
• Acts on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers, except where the Constitution allows discretion.
• Appoints the Chief Minister, the Advocate General, the State Election Commissioner, and the chairman and members of the BPSC.
• Is the Chancellor of state universities (under state university laws).
• Official residence in Patna, long known as Raj Bhavan and renamed Lok Bhavan in December 2025.

The Chief Minister and Council of Ministers

• The CM is appointed by the Governor — normally the leader of the majority in the Vidhan Sabha.
• The Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Vidhan Sabha.
• Its size cannot exceed 15 per cent of the Vidhan Sabha's strength (91st Amendment, 2003). With 243 members, Bihar can have up to 36 ministers including the CM.

The legislature

Bihar has a bicameral legislature:

• Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) — 243 members;
• Vidhan Parishad (Legislative Council) — 75 members.

See our guide on the Bihar Legislature.

The Secretariat

• The state's administrative headquarters is the Secretariat in Patna (the Old Secretariat is a heritage building; departments also function from the Main Secretariat and other buildings).
• Each department is headed politically by a minister and administratively by an Additional Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary or Secretary.
• The Chief Secretary is the senior-most civil servant and head of the state administration.
• The Director General of Police heads the state police.

Territorial administration

The District Magistrate

• Revenue — land records, collection, land acquisition;
• Law and order — as District Magistrate, with the Superintendent of Police;
• Elections — District Election Officer;
• Disaster management — chairs the District Disaster Management Authority;
• Development — coordination of schemes.

Other district officers

Sub-division, block and circle

• The SDO — a senior officer (often from the Bihar Administrative Service, a post filled through BPSC) — heads the sub-division, with magisterial and revenue powers.
• The BDO — heads the block administration and coordinates rural development schemes.
• The Circle Officer (Anchal Adhikari) — handles land records, mutation (dakhil-kharij), land disputes and certificates at the circle level.

Police

The judiciary

• The Patna High Court, established in 1916, is the High Court for Bihar.
• District and sessions courts, and subordinate courts, in each district.
• Unique to Bihar: Gram Kachahari — village courts under the Panchayati Raj system, headed by a Sarpanch, with powers to settle minor civil and criminal disputes (see our guide on Panchayati Raj in Bihar).

Other bodies

Representation in Parliament

• Lok Sabha: 40 seats.
• Rajya Sabha: 16 seats.

Practice

Prelims-style:

1. How many divisions and districts does Bihar have?
2. What is the maximum size of Bihar's Council of Ministers?
3. When was the Patna High Court established?
4. Who is usually the CEO of the Zila Parishad in Bihar?
5. What is a Gram Kachahari?

Mains-style:

• "The District Magistrate remains the linchpin of district administration in Bihar." Discuss.
• Examine the role of the Circle Officer in land administration and the challenges involved.