BJP asks U'khand govt to declare Gairsain permanent capital

Terming the forthcoming session of Uttarakhand Assembly in Gairsain as mere political drama, opposition BJP today asked the state government to declare the remote hill town in Chamoli district as the permament capital of the state if it was really serious about the issue.
"Either make it (Gairsain) the permanent capital or the summer capital. We (BJP) are with you, but the drama in the name of Gairsain must stop," Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Ajay Bhatt told reporters here.
Questioning the spending of crores of rupees on the holding of Assembly session in Gairsain, he said it was not fair to ferry the entire cabinet in choppers to the remote hill town just to pass the supplementary budget.

"If it serves the larger purpose of elevating the status of Gairsain as the permament capital, then it is okay. But holding a session of the state Assembly there just to pass the supplementary budget is sheer waste of money," he said.
Permanent capital status for Gairsain is an old demand since Uttarakhand statehood movement days but successive governments in the state have been non-committal on the issue.
Expressing apprehensions that the session scheduled to begin on November 2 would not last more than a couple of days as Chief Minister Harish Rawat and Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal were to attend a Yog Mahotsav beginning in Jageshwar on November 5, the BJP leader said the state government has no intention to debate issues of public interest on the floor of the House.

"We have a long list of issues including the sting CD episode, misappropriation of relief funds, the state government's controversial excise policy, growing morale of mining mafia and the bad law and order scenario to discuss in the House but I am afraid whether we would get time for all that during the brief session," he said.