Various associations of Uttarakhand natives settled in other States want to invest their money and use their professional background to develop their native State. Aimed at facilitating employment generation and enterprises to mitigate migration from the mountainous parts of Uttarakhand, these efforts will also include natives returning to settle in the State.
As part of this initiative, organisational office bearers from Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi and Rajasthan under the banner of Uttarakhand Pravasi Sangathan Samanvay Samiti (UPSSS) met political leaders in Dehradun on Sunday seeking measures including the formation of a policy to facilitate investment of capital and skills by non-resident Uttarakhandis in their native State.
Addressing the media here on Sunday, the Uttarakhand Samaj Pratinidhi Sabha (USPS), Haryana, head Bharat Bhushan Juyal said that the non-resident Uttarakhandis are eager to invest capital and other resources to generate employment and development in the State.
He said, “We are meeting leaders of all the major political parties in Uttarakhand demanding that all political parties declare their policy clearly on facilitating the active involvement of non-resident Uttarakhandis in the developmental efforts here. lakhs of Uttarakhand natives settled in various states have retained their roots here.
Instead of elsewhere, we want to invest capital and provide our expertise in Uttarakhand so that the desired level of development can be achieved to stall migration and encourage natives to return and settle in Uttarakhand.”
He further opined that natives of Uttarakhand living in other states feel like second-class citizens there and are treated with disdain in their native State. Citing an example he said, “About two years ago, the Uttarakhand government had invited applications for the vacant posts of Gram Sevaks with only those who passed XII from Uttarakhand or Uttar Pradesh being considered eligible. We settled outside Uttarakhand but belong here despite which we were discriminated against in this case,” he said, while adding that efforts are being undertaken to consolidate organisations of non-resident Uttarakhandis across the nation to facilitate their active involvement in developmental and other efforts in their native State.
USPS patron and secretary of UPSSS secretary Om Prakash Bhatt also expressed his views on the occasion.