Page 2 - Uttarakhand Assembly

EC publishes Uttarakhand's final electoral roll with 8.24 mn voters

The final electoral roll of Uttarakhand published by the Election Commission of India on Monday showed a total voter count of 82,43,423 in the state. Of the total electorate, 42,70,597 are males, 39,72,540 are females and 286 third gender voters, according to the published data. Sharing the electoral roll figures at press conference here, Uttarakhand Chief Electoral Officer V Shanmugham said there are a total of 93,357 service voters in Uttarakhand, including 90,763 men and 2,594 women. The highest number of voters were recorded in the 30-39 age group at 22,44,926, followed by 17,04,523 electors in the 40-49 age group, 16,59,290 in 20-29 age group, 11,86,686 in 50-59 years. A total of 7,50,563 voters are in the 60-69 age group, 4,14,114 aged 70-79 years, 1,54,259 voters aged above 80 years, and 129,062 in 18-19 age cohort, he said. There are 11,729 polling stations in the state, of which 3,461 are in urban areas, while 8,268 in rural areas.

Dip in rain, sunshine hours in U'khand's Terai region over 40 yrs: Research

The Terai region of Uttarakhand has recorded a significant reduction in rainfall and a noticeable shift in temperature patterns over a 40-year period starting from 1981 and this might negatively impact crop production in the area, according to a new research. The research conducted by scientists at the G B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology in Uttarakhand found out that the minimum temperature in the region has risen noticeably, while the maximum temperature has not changed significantly, indicating a narrowing range of temperatures. This shift could cause crops to mature prematurely, leading to reduced crop yields, according to the study published in the "Mausam Journal" of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) last week. "The actual decrease in rainfall, sunshine hours and evaporation over 40 years in the Terai region of Uttarakhand is about 58.621 mm, 1.673 hour and 1.1 mm," the study said. The decrease in these climate factors could be attributed to reasons such

Move fast on Destination U'khand Investors Summit agreements: CM Dhami

CM Dhami emphasised that the top priority of the state government is to connect the youth with employment and self-employment

Uttarakhand HC questions state govt on delay in announcing municipal polls

The Uttarakhand High Court has sought a reply from the state government as to why the schedule of municipal polls has not yet been announced despite the tenure of municipalities having come to an end on December 2. A division bench of the high court comprising Acting Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari and Justice Vivek Bharti Sharma on Wednesday asked the urban development secretary to appear before the court to give a reply on January 9. The order came on a PIL filed by a Jaspur resident, Anees, saying that the tenure of municipalities of the state ended on December 2. However, the state government has not yet made an announcement for polls. The Supreme Court has laid down the rule that the election schedule should be declared six months before the end of the five-year tenure of municipalities. This would ensure that the new board can be formed within the stipulated time. But the government has not yet announced the election schedule.

CM Dhami appoints 11 BJP leaders as vice presidents of councils, committees

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has appointed 11 more senior BJP leaders as vice-presidents of various councils and committees in the state. The second list of 11 party leaders appointed to different posts include Dedvendra Bhasin, Vishwas Dabur, Chandi Prasad Bhatt, Vinod Uniyal, Shyamveer Saini, Rajkumar, Dipak Mehra, Vinay Rohila, Uttam Dutta, Dinesh Arya and Ganesh Bhandari. The first list of 10 appointments had been issued in September. Uttarakhand BJP president Mahendra Bhatt congratulated all the party leaders on their nomination to the posts and hoped they will take public welfare schemes to the grassroots. "All party workers nominated to the posts are seniors who have experience and capability. Public welfare programmes launched by the government are bringing about a positive change in the lives of people. I hope those appointed as vice presidents of these bodies will help take the benefits of these programmes to people at the grassroots. I am confident they

Uttarkashi tunnel collapse: Protection umbrella being laid for rescue team

A BSNL official, said they are in the process of sending a small landline phone to the stranded workers through the pipe. "Through this, they will be able to talk directly to their families," he said

Uttarkashi tunnel rescue: CM Dhami tracks ops from temporary office camp

The ongoing rescue work entered its 13th day on Friday, with the trapped workers deemed safe and in good spirits

Rescue operations at Silkyara tunnel to take 12-14 hours more: Khulbe

An iron mesh that came in the path of the drilling machine creating an escape passage for the workers trapped in the Silkyara tunnel was removed on Thursday morning but has delayed the rescue operation by 12 to 14 hours, a senior official said. Former advisor to the prime minister's office Bhaskar Khulbe said removing the mesh in a claustrophobic environment inside the pipe was difficult. "It took us six hours to remove it. But the good news is that we have cleared the hurdle which came yesterday after drilling up to 45 metres had been done," Khulbe told reporters. Now the process of assembling to go beyond 45 metres which requires welding the pipes has been restarted. The drilling will also resume soon, he said. It will take around 12 to 14 hours more to complete the whole operation of reaching the workers. After that, it will take three more hours to take out the workers one by one. That will be done with the help of NDRF, Khulbe said. Union Minister of State for Road Transport

Almora-Haldwani NH in Uttarakhand blocked due to debris after landslide

The Almora-Haldwani Road National Highway in Uttarakhand has been blocked for vehicular traffic due to debris near Kwarb Bridge

Dhami holds review meeting amid heavy rain, asks officials to ensure action

The Chief Minister directed officials to ensure the safety of citizen and the availability of all possible facilities for them

Heavy rains wash away part of Badrinath highway, pilgrimage disrupted

A 100-metre stretch of the Gauchar-Badrinath highway at Kamera was washed away on Monday following heavy overnight rainfall, disrupting the pilgrimage to the Himalayan temple. The route will remain closed for Badrinath pilgrims for two-three days, according to an official statement issued here. Efforts are underway on war footing to repair and open the route to traffic at the earliest, it said. A part of a road also caved in at Bhattnagar near Gauchar and five vehicles parked along the roadside got buried in the debris, the state emergency operation centre here said. The rubble is being cleared, it said, adding no one was hurt in the incident.

Distribution of compensation to affected people begins in Joshimath

The Uttarakhand government has started distributing compensation to affected house owners in land subsidence-hit Joshimath under the state's rehabilitation policy, an official statement said. The process began on Friday on the direction of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, with three Joshimath residents getting Rs 63.20 lakh as compensation on the first day. The beneficiaries included retired subedar-major Manglu Lal, Krishna Panwar and Baldev Singh Panwar, residents of one of the worst-affected Suneel ward of Joshimath, it said. Other affected people in the town will also be getting their compensations soon after the administration finishes verifying the documents, the statement added.

Uttarakhand approves compensation for people in land subsidence Joshimath

The Uttarakhand Cabinet on Wednesday gave its approval to a policy for compensation and permanent rehabilitation of the affected families and people in land subsidence-hit Joshimath. It approved a one-time financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh to people who were running shops or businesses in rented accommodations rendered unsafe by the disaster. The approval to the proposed policy was given at a meeting of the state cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Chief Secretary S S Sandhu told reporters. The cabinet also approved the State Millet Mission, which will facilitate distribution of one kilogram of millet to each family through the Public Distribution System under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana and serving of Jhangora and Manduwa (a type of millet) in mid-day meal at schools, Sandhu said. A total of 52 decisions were taken by the cabinet including approval to a strict anti-copying law brought through an ordinance, increasing the retirement age for Ayurvedic college ...

New anti-conversion law was necessary, will be enforced strictly: Dhami

A day after the Uttarakhand Assembly passed a more stringent anti-conversion Bill, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday said the new law will be enforced strictly in the state. He said a stricter anti-conversion law was necessary as Uttarakhand is the land of gods and practices like religious conversion are "detrimental to us". The Uttarakhand Assembly on Wednesday passed the Uttarakhand Freedom of Religion (Amendment) Act, 2022, making unlawful religious conversion a cognisable and non-bailable offence punishable with imprisonment for a term of at least three years and a maximum of 10 years. Besides, an offender will be liable to pay a fine of at least Rs 50,000 and a compensation of up to Rs 5 lakh to the victim. The Assembly also passed the Uttarakhand Public Services (Horizontal Reservation for Women) Bill, 2022, granting 30 per cent horizontal reservation to domiciled women of Uttarakhand in state services. "A stricter anti-conversion law was necessary as Uttarakhan

Confident that Dhami will work even harder for Uttarakhand's progress: PM

Dhami defeated Nirmala Gahtori of the Congress by a margin of 55,025 votes, election officials in Champawat said

Polling begins for Champawat by-election in Uttarakhand; CM Dhami in fray

Polling for by-election to the Champawat assembly seat in Uttarakhand began on Tuesday morning

BJP in process of finalising candidates for new Uttarakhand cabinet

As the party leaders are busy picking up MLAs for ministerial berths, the media continues to speculate about the look of Dhami's new cabinet, which is likely to be a combination of old and new faces

We accept people's mandate, will return with new strategy: Congress

After the defeat in assembly polls in five states, the Congress on Thursday said the election results are contrary to the party's expectations, but it accepts the people's mandate.

Uttarakhand polls: At helm of losing side is Congress' Harish Rawat

The defeat in the elections has put a question mark on the five-time MP and former Union minister's political future

Congress leadership, party MLAs will decide Uttarakhand CM: Poll observer

A day ahead of the counting of the votes, Congress poll observer in Uttarakhand Mohan Prakash on Wednesday said that Chief Minister will be decided by the party high commands and elected MLAs