The three years of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami’s government have been eventful in terms of high-profile political decisions. The foremost in this regard has been implementation of the Uniform Civil Code, in that it showed how such legislation can be formulated at the state level if there is the political will. The jury is out, of course, on how much it meets the constitution’s objectives, whether it is practical and effective.
It can be alleged that most of the government’s initiatives are follow-ups on populist demands that seek to ‘protect’ the state from ‘outsiders’ of various descriptions. However, while this approach may be based on attracting votes, there can be no objections to the basic purpose of ensuring ‘love jihad’, ‘land jihad’, religious conversion activities, if they are taking place, are prevented. This should be done judiciously, of course, and that will be the job of the bureaucracy.
There can be no doubt about the necessity for a strict anti-copying law, and anti-riot law. Also, encroachment on government and public land, as well as illegal madrasas that do not conform to the established norms, definitely need to be prevented.
Legislative action when one has a comfortable majority and public support is easy. However, when it comes to boosting the economy and creating jobs, the challenges are many. It requires an understanding of the fundamentals and creating a conducive environment. The CM has, in this context, mentioned the creation of required infrastructure, road, rail and ropeway connectivity. The demand in this regard from concerned citizens is that the environment needs to be protected and conserved. The focus should not just be on how large the projects are and how expensive. Experts have also pointed out that the planned increase in accessibility could lead to ‘over-tourism’ with all its negative aspects. Perhaps the advice given by them to focus on high-paying tourists needs to be given greater consideration. Similarly, in the face of burgeoning pilgrim arrival, along with the plan to increase the number of destinations, an effort should be made to promote the traditional treks to the Dhams for the ‘real’ spiritual experience. That would involve simplicity, less pollution and environmental pressure. In sync with the promotion of adventure tourism and local products, the homestay scheme, and enhanced sports activities, a sustainable path to development would become possible.
However, none of this will become possible if law and order, general policing activities like traffic management do not substantially improve to match the image of Uttarakhand that is being sought to be promoted.
