Himalayan states should mutually prepare an effective development policy: CM
PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Dehradun
The chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has said that due to their similar geographical, environmental and social conditions, the Himalayan States can prepare an effective policy for development through mutual cooperation and exchange of experiences. He was addressing the first meeting of the Himalayan States Coordination and Policymaking Council at his residence on Friday.
The objective of the council is to strengthen coordination among the Himalayan states and address common challenges. Detailed discussions were held on various points related to developing an integrated strategy for the meeting and accelerating regional development.
Dhami said that the good work done in various fields in the Himalayan states should be studied in detail and adopted in Uttarakhand as best practice. “Our main objective is to improve the standard of human life by coordinating the economy and ecology. Uttarakhand is an important state from the point of view of natural wealth and biodiversity. There is immense potential for work in the state in the field of conservation of Himalayas and medicines,’’ he said.
Dhami informed that the State government is continuously making efforts towards water conservation. Numerous efforts are being made towards the revival of water sources. He called for continued cooperation from institutions performing excellent work in the field of Himalayan and environmental conservation. The CM said that periodic meetings and seminars should be held with experts from the Himalayan states to address various challenges facing them. Discussions on climate change, disaster management, tourism, biodiversity conservation, water resource conservation and border area development were held in the meeting. The CM directed that the administration should list the suggestions and make an effort to implement them.
Chief secretary Anand Bardhan said that efforts will be made to address the challenges faced by Himalayan states by working in an integrated manner. He stated that a large population of the country benefits from the Himalayas.
The member of the council and MLA Kishore Upadhyaya said that the latest scientific and ecological status of the Himalayas and central Himalayas should be studied. Council member and former DGP Anil Raturi said that Himalayan states must work in an organized manner to enhance all Himalayan resources and people’s livelihoods. Acharya Prashant said that a joint task force should be formed for the Himalayan states. The challenges faced by Himalayan states are similar and efforts should be made jointly to formulate appropriate policies for them. Recipient of Padmashree, Kalyan Singh Rawat emphasised on the need for conservation of Bugyals.
Principal secretary R Meenakshi Sundaram, secretary Shailesh Bagauli, director general UCOST Durgesh Pant and others attended the meeting.
