By Brigadier Sarvesh Dutt (Pahadi) Dangwal
As Uttarakhand completes 25 years of its formation, celebration without reflection would be hollow. The state, burdened by debt and corruption, stands at a crossroads — between moral rebirth and irreversible decline. The time has come to reclaim the ideals of sacrifice, integrity, and service that once defined the movement for Uttarakhand.
The 25-year journey of Uttarakhand is not merely a milestone to celebrate; it is a moment for deep introspection. The creation of this state was never meant to be a mere administrative or geographic reorganisation. It was the expression of a people’s vision, faith, and sense of collective responsibility — a moral reconstruction of the hill society’s identity.
And yet, as we stand at the quarter-century mark, one must ask: have we built the Uttarakhand that our martyrs and andolankaris dreamed of? Or have we merely replaced one exploitative structure with another — where power has become synonymous with position and plunder?
Today, Uttarakhand has become a tragic story of debt, corruption, and self-congratulatory governance. The state is burdened with a debt exceeding Rs 1 lakh crore, and new loans are being raised merely to service the interest. Under the garb of “development”, the state is sinking deeper into a swamp of fiscal irresponsibility.
The rot runs deep. At every level — from block to the highest administrative echelons — the so-called development works funded through the MLA funds carry a 15 percent commission as an unofficial rule. Public money has turned into a source of loot. The sacred soil of Devbhoomi now hosts liquor factories named after our gods and goddesses — a cruel mockery of our faith and cultural ethos.
This is no longer merely a moral decline; it is a spiritual collapse. Uttarakhand has, sadly, earned the reputation of being among the most corrupt states in India. Yet the government, instead of self-reflection, celebrates the “youth” of the state with misplaced pride — oblivious to the growing despair of its people.
Was this the dream of our forefathers?
Was this the purpose behind the struggle for a separate state — that Devbhoomi would become a land of debt, commissions, and corruption?
This is not just a story of failed governance; it is the death of the very consciousness once called the soul of Uttarakhand.
The coming decade must, therefore, be one of clarity and moral courage. If Uttarakhand is to reclaim its rightful direction, politics must shift from the consumption of power to the commitment to service. Power must not remain an end in itself — it must become an instrument to bring light into people’s lives.
True development is not measured by roads, bridges, or buildings alone. It is measured by the trust, dignity, and happiness of every citizen — when from Gairsain to Gangotri, from Munsiyari to Chamoli, every villager, every child, every farmer believes that this state truly belongs to them; that their labour, their dreams, and their children’s future are secure on this soil.
The time has come not merely to change governments but to transform the very mindset of governance. Both the soldier and the citizen must unite in purpose. The people of Uttarakhand must build a political movement powerful enough to keep both national parties — BJP and Congress — away from the corridors of power, for both have reduced politics to a means of exploitation.
Their goal has been to capture power and plunder resources.
Ours must be to serve, to govern with integrity, and to pursue sustainable and equitable development.
This is not a time for rhetoric but for unity — for only through solidarity can we protect the identity, dignity, and existence of this fragile hill state.
Uttarakhand today stands at a crossroads:
One path leads to renaissance — the other, to ruin.
On this 25th anniversary, let us pledge that Uttarakhand’s politics will no longer dance to the tunes of Delhi, but will rise from the soil of Garhwal and Kumaon — from the collective will of its people, who through honesty, hard work, and dedication will transform this land — not into a mythical heaven, but into a living, just, and prosperous state.
That will be the true Uttarakhand Renaissance.
That will be the Uttarakhand our martyrs dreamed of.
And that, above all, will be our moral and political duty.
