Unless strong land laws are not enacted immediately to protect and preserve the sovereign land rights of Uttarakhandies, the dreams of new Uttarakhand will remain elusive and mirage

BY K. S. Jangpangi, DGP ( Retd)

UKSSSC job scam was waiting to be exposed. This scam has exposed the rampant corruption writ large in the governance and polity of Uttarakhand. This might surprise many but didn’t surprise me at all because I knew how corruption has eaten the vitals of Uttarakhand state and society.

Nothing moves in Uttarakhand without greasing the palms of politicians and bureaucrats. Casteism and corruption are the biggest achievements of the new state of Uttarakhand. There is a scam in almost every appointment in Uttarakhand. It is either guided by caste consideration or corruption.

Outsiders have almost grabbed all the land in all the pristine places of Uttarakhand due to political and bureaucratic connection /corruption.

There is no political leader in Uttarakhand Congress or BJP who can raise the voice against the central leadership of their party even in matters affecting the sovereign land rights of Uttarakhandies.

Why no effective land laws to protect the rights of Uttarakhandis vis a vis outsiders is being legislated by Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly ?

This is because the leaders of Congress and BJP are sold out to outsiders through central leadership at various levels and their own greed to make money even at the cost of sovereign land rights of common Uttarakhandi. The leaders of UKD are sold out to Congress or BJP for their personal welfare.

So there is a complete political nexus operating in Uttarakhand against the sovereign land rights of common Uttarakhandis. Unless strong land laws are not enacted immediately to protect and preserve the sovereign land rights of Uttarakhandis the dreams of new Uttarakhand will remain elusive and mirage. While the people want a new state to have land right bills favouring them and the development of the state keeping in view their unique ecology of the state. But neither has happened. And there is no concern visible in this direction in the state.

Instead state political leadership and bureaucracy is pushing for mega projects that are dangerous for its ecology but good for their pockets.

Do we really need four or six lane in Uttarakhand? Won’t our needs will be met by two lane Highways? Why this craze for mega projects in ecologically sensitive zones like Uttarakhand ? Haven’t we gone crazy on such ecologically disastrous route of development ?

This is sheer madness and sycophancy of mind. Now there is another craze to bring Railways in Uttarakhand. Do we really need railways in Uttarakhand which will spell environmental ruin and disaster of the state.

We have hypothecated our thinking to Delhi and failed to protect our land and environment.

Why do we need elevated road corridor through Rajaji National Park. Just to reach Dehradun from Delhi in two hours.

Whose interest it is serving? Heaven won’t fall if we reach Dehradun in three hours, if we have to save Rajaji National Park.

But Delhi decides and our leaders sing that tune more vigorously to trample any feeble protest to save Uttarakhand.

What this new state of Uttarakhand has done to bring to justice the perpetrators of Muzaffarnagar atrocity upon activists of Uttarakhand State ? Has anyone bothered to follow or pursue? What the leaders of UKD have done in this regard ? No one to ask them this question. Saddest part is the rampant corruption in governance and polity of Uttarakhand.

Let me say here all Uttarakhandis are complicit in the enterprise of corruption. The bureaucracy of Uttarakhand is so deep in corruption and wrong doings that they will not mend their ways until some big guns in bureaucracy are not penalised stringently and local political leadership becomes strong to take on central leadership and corrupt bureaucracy.

UKSSSC scam in a way offers some ray of hope if state political leadership seizes the opportunity to clean up the system. If they fail to rise up this time it will be end of Uttarakhand state and polity.

(The author is DGP (R) , Views in the article are his personal)