A delegation of Congress workers led by State PCC president Kishore Upadhyay met Chief Minister Harish Rawat at the Bijapur guest house on Saturday and submitted a nine-point proposal drafted at a meeting of the Pradesh Congress Committee held on December 24, to him.
Among the points that figured in the submission, the alleged sorry state of things involving the petroleum university figured prominently. It is alleged that since its inception in 2003 as a non-profitable society at Sahaspur in Dehradun, the university management has appointed a foreign director of the board of directors and withdrawn 20 percent of the funds collected as royalty. The submission says that the amount withdrawn stands at `500 crore and there is a possibility of misuse of the fund.
There is thus a need to audit things to stop misuse or misappropriation of the funds, the submission adds. It further says that the State government should probe the state of things as the varsity came up on a land allotted land on subsidized rate. The non-profit organisation is now turning into a commercial establishment, the submission alleges.
Another point that the submission has raised is about the need to include the subject of the unique type of non-violent, yet vigorous stirs that Uttarakhand has begotten in the academic curricula. It says that history of such historical agitations being proud parts of the State’s history should be taken to the new generation. Besides, things that are unique to the State in the fields of culture, geography, tradition, sports and the like should be incorporated in the academic curricula.
It further states that the matter of the youths from Uttarkahand not getting much space in Public Service Commission should be redressed through measures to incorporate more Uttarakhand- specific questions in the question papers. It says that the demand is justified, given the fact that other states are following this pattern with half of the questions being linked to the respective state’s own features. It also mentions the problems the state’s youths are facing because of C-sat. The submission demands that PCS and subordinate service selection board/commission should not give much weight to C-sat marks in main examination.
Referring to the non-use of land allotted under industrial package to several industrial institutions at subsidized rates by many of such institutions, the submission says details of the allotment of such lands since 1990 should be made public. The lands which were allotted thus and have remained unused should be taken back by the Government by way of punitive measure, the submission demands.
Besides, the industries coming up here must make sure that at least 70 percent of the workforce comprise youths from the State, an arrangement neighbouring Himachal Pradesh has been following with positive results.
The submission also raises the plight of the sugarcane farmers who are not getting their dues because of the faulty mismanagement of the Union government. Misguided by the BJP they look disappointed with the State Government. It asks the State Government to establish communiqué with Union government to give the power to control the price of sugar to the state government. This is the way to rightly address the farmers woes, it states.
With the Union government releasing fund to gram pradhan as per the 14th Finance Commission recommendation, Kshetra Panchayat and District Panchayat are not getting funds from the Centre. In this situation, the state government should intervene to smoothen things out for them, the submission says, adding that the State Government must remember the fact while seeking to intervene that the gram pradhans are about to stage a stir to protest its allegedly partisan attitude towards the other two representative bodies of the panchayat structure.
It asks the State Government to tread cautiously and go for a Government order to clear things. The submission also grabs the attention of the CM in MP lAD (local area development) and MlA lAD because they have been using the fund for the welfare of party workers. “As we know that state has limited resources so if we use this fund judiciously it can play major role in state’s development,” the submission runs.