UCC to be implemented in Uttarakhand this year: CM Pushkar Singh Dhami

The Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand will be implemented within this year, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said.

He also said that people from outside the state have been settling down in Uttarakhand without identity verification, leading to a demographic change that has to be checked.

"There should be a uniform law for every citizen in the country. It has been the demand of the people. Uttarakhand is all set to make the beginning. Under the Constitutional provisions, we will implement the UCC in the state within this year," Dhami said at a programme here on Monday.

He was speaking on the theme "Growing Uttarakhand, Rising Uttarakhand".

The UCC was promised to the people of the state in the run-up to the assembly polls last year, he said.

"We were re-elected with a massive mandate breaking the convention of incumbent governments losing the polls. In our first decisions after forming the government, we set up a committee to draft the UCC," Dhami said.

The panel has taken the opinions of 2.33 lakh people and different organisations, institutions and tribal groups before preparing the draft of the UCC, he said.

The Ganga and Yamuna rivers originate in Uttarakhand, which has also for ages been a sacred land of spiritualism and faith, attracting people from all over the world, Dhami said, adding that the essential character of Uttarakhand needs to be maintained.

"Without identity verification, people from outside the state have been settling down here which is leading to a demographic change. It has to be checked," he said.

The chief minister spoke of strict action being taken by the state government against illegal encroachments and forcible conversions.

Encroachments have been removed from 3000 hectares of forest land and a stricter anti-conversion law has been introduced to stop forcible conversions, he said.

The youths are being connected to different self-employment schemes. Reverse migration has also started in the state after the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

Efforts are underway to attract investors to the state. A big investors summit is being held here in December.

In view of the diverse geographical conditions of the state which consists of both mountainous and plain areas, 27 region-specific policies have been framed to bring investments in different sectors, he said.

Uttarakhand is situated in the lap of the fragile Himalayas.

After the disaster in Joshimath, the load-bearing capacity of the towns is being studied to strike a balance between ecology and economic development, he said.

The number of pilgrims coming on Chardham Yatra is set to cross previous records with more than 38 lakh having visited the Himalayan temples already, he said.