Trivendra Singh Rawat-led BJP government in Uttarakhand will mark its third anniversary this Wednesday. After having completed three and half years years in office, has chief minister (CM) Rawat delivered on the expectations that voters had of his government that was elected with a massive mandate in 2017? The jury seems divided on this point. Political analysts say that while efforts have been made by the state government, the results are yet to show comprehensively on the ground as many of the government’s projects are still to be implemented properly.
Terming the tenure of Rawat as “a mixed bag”, Doon-based analyst Udit Ghildiyal said, “If we look at the positive side, Trivendra Rawat has been successful in ending corruption within the CM office and other ministries. Now, you will not find middlemen hanging around who will claim to get official work done through their contacts, which is a positive move.” On the flip side, he added, not much work is visible on the ground to improve health and education facilities in the hills.
“People in the hills continue to migrate. Primary schools are closing at a rapid pace and owing to poor health services, people of the hills still prefer to bring their patients to hospitals in Dehradun and Haldwani, adding to the pressure on these cities,” Ghildiyal said. The chief minister while highlighting the work done by his government, had told that to check migration and encourage reverse migration, the state government has opened 83 growth centres in the last three years.
“We are also encouraging homestays. Presently, the state has 2,100 homestays. Also, the ‘13 districts-13 destinations’ project has been launched to boost tourism in the state.”
