The objective behind the formation of Uttarakhand has been nullified by the Uttarakhand Government’s decision to incorporate changes  in Uttar Pradesh Zamidari Abolition Act 1950 to facilitate  outsiders to purchase unrestricted amount of land in the state, said All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and former Chief Minister Harish Rawat while addressing the media persons here on Tuesday.

Launching a blistering attack on the State Government, the Congress veteran said that the culture and  the environment of the State is being threatened by the changes made in sections 143 and 154 of UP, ZA Act 1950. Former CM urged the legislators to cut across the party lines and demand repeal of the changes in the act passed in the Assembly recently, given the subsequent dangers staring the state in the face.

Rawat also took a swipe at the BJP-helmed State Government on the matter of job reservation for the statehood activists. “By abolishing the horizontal reservation for the statehood activists in the government jobs after the Governor returned the bill for the same, the BJP Government has revealed its mind. There is no room for doubt that it is against providing jobs to the statehood activists,” he said.

The charismatic Congress leader further raked up the emotive Gairsain issue and said that all the construction activity initiated at Gairsain has stopped. “We set up a Gairsain Road Tunnel and infrastructure authority to boost infrastructure development at Gairsain. However, the present Government has abruptly wound up  all such developmental activities, making its intentions clear. The work on building up the secretariat and other buildings has also stopped. BJP is now mired in intra-party bickering over Gairsain. They are playing politics while the place is being left out in the cold,’’ he said.

The former CM who is also a member of Congress Working Committee (CWC) said that ongoing probe in National Highway (NH)-74 scam has resulted in cessation of arbitration work due to which farmers have been facing problems and development of the state is being affected. He suggested that as the district magistrates are evading discharging arbitration duties, a ‘State Arbitration Authority’ should be set up so that the arbitration works are not affected.

Rawat also charged the state government for remaining antipathetic towards the unemployed youth of the State. He said that the employment generation aspect of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act ( MNREGA) has been suspended and it has been turned into contractual activity. Rawat further alleged that the present government has stopped the process of appointments on the vacant posts in the Government. “We filled up 16000 posts and started the process to fill 14000 more, but now this government has halted the process. The High Court ( HC) has given its verdict in favour of UPNL workers but the state government is challenging it in the Supreme Court to scuttle the move,’’ he quipped.

The former CM also slammed the State Government for revoking the formula the Congress Government had devised for regularising guest teachers.

Rawat also went ballistic on the BJP Government for ignoring the plight of the sugarcane farmers. “Sugar mills are sitting over payments to the tune of  Rs  360 crore due to the sugarcane growers. The Government has not declared the purchase price of sugarcane yet and the purchase centres have also not been set up.

Under such circumstances, the sugarcane would remain standing in the farms and sowing of wheat  would also be delayed,’’ he said.

Rawat threatened that if the problem of sugarcane farmers is not solved he would be forced to start an agitation.

On Rafale deal, he said that basic questions like escalated price of aircraft, choice of Reliance as offset partner and purchase of less number of planes are still unanswered.

‘Anguished over heinous crime against Pauri girl’

Expressing deep anguish over the heinous incident of a girl being set ablaze  by a man in Pauri district, Harish Rawat said that it would have been better had the girl been airlifted to New Delhi promptly. He said that the AIIMS Rishikesh where she is at present being treated does not have the required facility for treating  burn injuries.