Uttarakhand shares international boundaries with two of India’s most important neighbours. On your north-east is China while in the south–east is Nepal. Recently, tragedy struck Nepal in the form of a series of earthquakes leading to large scale devastation and loss of human lives. I take this occasion to extend my deepest condolences to them. Union government is extending all possible help and support and we have assured them both government and people of Nepal that we are with them in their hour of need.
Uttarakhand has been a leader in efforts for sustainable development. The country’s first effort at conservation of forests, the Corbett Park came up in 1936 in this region. It was the first Park of its kind not only in the country but in the whole of Asia. The world famous ‘Chipko Movement’ was launched by Gaura Devi, a simple village woman from the remote village of Raini in district Chamoli. It subsequently gained momentum under the leadership of Shri Sunderlal Bahuguna and other environmentalists.
Explaining about the importance of environment, Mukherjee talked about Chipko Movement. "Soil is ours, water is ours,ours are these forests, our forefathers raised them, it’s we who must protect them”. “The 12000 Van Panchayats which manage a sizeable portion of the State’s forests through community participation are an institution unique in the country. Uttarakhand also has the distinction of increasing its forest cover by more than 1100 sq kms during the first 10 years of its existence.
He also said that state intends to make Gairsain in Chamoli district as the summer capital of the State and construction of a new Vidhan Sabha Bhavan has started. “The measures taken by the State to improve governance such as e-Treasury, computerization of land records, online delivery of public services, online grievance redressal mechanism, will surely be welcomed by the people. I also appreciate the green initiatives and process automation undertaken by this Assembly to move towards a paperless legislature”.
Appreciating the political awareness of the people, Mukherjee said” “The voting percentage in the Assembly elections has steadily increased from 54.34% in the Assembly Elections of 2002 to 67.22% in the 2012 elections. Moreover, all three elections witnessed a change in treasury benches. The hallmark of a vibrant democracy is that the ballot forms the basis of transition of power.” “I visited the beautiful state of Arunachal Pradesh in November 2013 and I was told that leaders of traditional tribal councils of the state called Kebang andBuliangre cite a passage at the beginning of their meeting –
"Villagers and brethren, let us strengthen our custom and our council, let us improve our relations, let us make the laws straight and equal for all, let our laws be uniform, let our customs be the same for all, let us be guided by reason and see that justice is done and compromise reached that is acceptable to both parties. let us decide while the dispute is fresh, lest the small disputes grow big and continue for the long time. We have come together for a council meeting and let us speak in one voice and decide our verdict. So let us decide and mete out justice.”