How did the era of extortion in government contracts begin? Engineers were shot dead with AK-47s in broad daylight, and criminals' shares started to be fixed on every contract.

In Bihar, from the 1990s to the 2000s, the old face of extortion was associated with the kidnapping and ransom of doctors, businessmen, and large traders. The criminals would target a specific family or individual, take money, and then disappear. In 2005, the Nitish government came into power, focusing on development along with crime control. Work on roads, bridges, culverts, and other government projects began to progress rapidly. With changing times, criminals also changed their methods of earning a living. Now...