Uttarakhand

• 01 Sep 2022

New Districts will be Formed in Uttarakhand

Why In News?

• On August 31, 2022, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the process of formation of new districts in the state will be started soon.

Key Points

• He said that the demand for formation of new districts has been going on for a long time, it will be discussed with all the public representatives soon. Wherever the districts can be reorganized within the state, new districts will be formed.
• Under this, Rishikesh, Purola, Roorkee, Kotdwar, Kashipur, Ranikhet and Didihat cities are being considered. He indicated that four new districts may come up in Garhwal and three in Kumaon division.
• At present, there are 13 districts in the state. On August 15, 2011, the then Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' first announced the creation of four districts in Uttarakhand. These included Ranikhet, Didihat, Kotdwar and Yamunotri.
• Reorganization of Almora district was proposed to create Ranikhet, Didihat from Pithoragarh district, Kotdwar from Pauri district and Yamunotri district from Uttarkashi district.
• At the same time, in March 2021, the then Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had announced to make summer capital Gairsain as the third commissionerate. Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Almora and Bageshwar districts were included in this. After this, a fierce protest started regarding the inclusion of Almora in the Gairsain Commissionerate. Meanwhile, after the resignation of Trivendra Singh Rawat and Tirath Rawat becoming the CM, this issue also got suppressed.

Uniform Civil Code will be Implemented in Uttarakhand

Why In News?

• On August 30, 2022, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami informed during a media interaction that the Uniform Civil Code will be implemented in Uttarakhand within two months.

Key Points

• The Chief Minister said that the committee formed on the Common Civil Code is doing its work. The process of preparing the draft is underway. The government will soon make its draft public.
• Significantly, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had promised the public during the assembly elections that he would implement the Common Civil Code in Uttarakhand if the BJP government comes to power. The proposal was approved on March 23.
• After the implementation of the new law, Uttarakhand will become the first state in the country to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) after independence. Although this law is also applicable in Goa, but this law was made there before independence.
• Uniform Civil Code means uniform law for all citizens. There will be no separate law for any religion or caste. Once the Uniform Civil Code is implemented, all religions will follow the same law.