A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah told the Rajya Sabha that every state with a BJP government will introduce a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) like the one in Uttarakhand, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami announced on Wednesday that the UCC will come. Implemented in the state from January 2025.
According to a state government release, the chief minister made the announcement at a meeting of the Uttarakhand Investment and Infrastructure Development Board (UIIDB) in Dehradun.
He said that the rules of the UCC Act have also been made and said that the homework of its implementation has been completed and the work of training the employees is underway. Sources said the UCC rules have also been examined by the state law department.
In the meeting, Dhami said that after the new government was formed in Uttarakhand in March 2022, it was decided to form an expert committee to implement the UCC in the state for the first time in the cabinet meeting.
Later, a five-member expert panel headed by retired Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai was constituted and based on its report, the Proportional Civil Code Bill, 2024, was passed by the Legislative Assembly on February 7, 2024. The Act was notified in March. 12, 2024 after approval from the President.
“Now, Uttarakhand is fully prepared to implement the UCC from January,” Dhami said, the statement said, adding that the chief minister directed officials to provide proper training and facilities to staff to implement the UCC.
“The Uniform Civil Code Act of Uttarakhand will give a new direction to the society by following the basic spirit of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas’. This law will open new doors especially for the empowerment of women and children of Devbhoomi,” Dhami said.
He said that on the one hand, this step will prove to be a milestone in the direction of strengthening social equality and unity, and on the other hand, Uttarakhand will become a guide for other states as well.
The Chief Minister said that a portal and a mobile app have also been developed to facilitate online registration and appeal.
Earlier, the committee formed to make regulations for the implementation of UCC submitted its report to Dhami government on October 1 this year, after which the government planned to establish UCC before November 9 on the occasion of the 24th foundation day of the province. However, that could not happen because the training of the staff was not completed, sources said.
With the BJP intending to use the Uttarakhand UCC as a role model for other states, sources said the rule template was drawn up with this in mind.
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