Every new administrative entity faces some issues. Jharkhand being the recently formed state also face some issues. The issues are discussed as under:
- Poverty: Jharkhand is the fifth poorest Indian state with 51.6% rural people below the poverty line (BPL).
- Reduced agriculture output: Declining fertility of soils, increasing incidences of drought and seasonal shifts in rainfall patterns are affecting traditional cropping patterns.
- Depleting Natural resources : It has large proportion of tribal communities which are highly dependent on the natural resources base for their survival and their livelihood systems revolved around forests, agriculture, livestock and wage labour. Degradation of forestland due to uncontrolled grazing , illegal logging and misapplication of forest policies is creating problem for the tribals.
- Devolution of powers: Although a number of specific state and National acts, policies and programmes have been in place for some time, these are yet to make any perceptible changes. The provisions of PESA, 1996 is yet to be materialized. It was only in 2010 Government of Jharkhand carried out elections. Financial and executive power devolution is still a distant dream.
- Left wing extremism: The situation affects 20 out of 24 states. LWE mobilize discontent among tribal people to its cause and on the other hand, prevents the government to deliver services to improve their quality of life and living conditions.
- Mortality: The state has a high mortality rate for children under five. Child mortality rate of 69 per 1000 is much higher than the national average . Infant mortality rate is 67 as against all India average of 57. Immunisation % is just 35% against the average of 49.7%.
- Malnutrition: four out of every 10 women in jharkhand are undernourished. Half the children younger than three are considered malnourished. About 57% are underweight due to both chronic under nutrition, worse nutritional status than children in most other states in India.