On Monday, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi to brief him on the COVID-19 situation in the state and the state government’s efforts to stem the spread of infection. The Chief Minister requested a special grant from the Government of India to develop Uttarakhand as a completely organic state during the half-hour meeting, stating that Uttarakhand is a Himalayan hill state.
He believes that because Uttarakhand’s environment is so delicate, a ‘Glacial and Water Resources Research Center’ should be established in the state to study glaciers throughout the Himalayan region and ways to protect water sources. Rawat also demanded an additional quota for vaccine delivery in rural areas in the event of road closures due to monsoon or calamity in the state.
The Chief Minister thanked the Prime Minister for providing free COVID-19 vaccination to all citizens over the age of 18, as well as for providing free food grains to the state’s 80 million people. He also expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for the rail line connecting Rishikesh and Karnprayag.
He thanked the Indian government for approving three Doppler radars and requested that ten small Doppler radars be provided for the valley. The Chief Minister also requested that an AIIMS branch be established in Rishikesh.
The state’s roads are being built at a rapid pace, according to the Chief Minister, thanks to the Prime Minister’s unprecedented vision.
Rawat stated that the Indian government has provided the state with all kinds of assistance in the fight against COVID-19. DRDO has constructed hospitals in Rishikesh and Haldwani as part of this project.
The development of Kedarnath Dham, according to the Chief Minister, is the result of the Prime Minister’s visionary thinking, and an outline for the development of Badrinath Dham is also being prepared.
