Need to document Himachal Pradesh 50 year journey says CM
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur today stressed the need to document the achievements of Himachal Pradesh on the path of development in the past 50 years.
He was speaking at a function organised in the Vidhan Sabha to honour all former Speakers, MPs and MLAs here today on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the statehood.
Thakur expressed gratitude to people for their significant contributions to the development of the state. “It is a journey full of achievements and accomplishments and it is our duty to educate the new generation about it,” he said.
Thakur said that 51 programmes of major departments were planned to showcase the developmental journey of the state but these could not be held due to the Covid pandemic. “Now, the state government has planned to hold the Swarnim Himachal Rath Yatra to showcase the developmental journey of the state,” he added.
He said that the documentation of the state’s achievements must be done so that the coming generation could get a glimpse of the eventful journey.
“Today, Himachal is ranked as a top state in the country and a model hill state, which has come a long way. Himachal has emerged as a power surplus state. My efforts in my almost four-year tenure have been to provide clean, transparent, and accountable governance”.
He said that former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had given liberal financial assistance to the state and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, had ensured that the state gets special attention. He also remembered all former Chief Ministers and paid tributes to Dr Yashwant Singh Parmar, Ram Lal Thakur, Virbhadra Singh, Shanta Kumar and Prem Kumar Dhumal for their contributions to the development of the state.
Leader of the Opposition Mukesh Agnihotri said that the role of first Chief Minister Yashwant Singh Parmar in getting a separate identity was significant. He raised the demand for the creation of a Himachal or Himalayan regiment so that the youth of the state could get more jobs in the Army. He said that Himachal should be compensated for protecting forests.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Bhardwaj said Himachal that came into existence on January 25, 1971, as the 18th state of Indian Union had made unparalleled progress in all spheres.
Speaker Vipin Parmar said, “In 2014, the HP Assembly had achieved the feat of becoming the first paperless House in the country. Himachal has taken the lead in enacting several legislations,” he added.