Different surveys conducted by several leading media houses of the country ranked Uttarakhand Chief Minister Major General (reted.) B.C. Khanduri as the best Chief Minister in the country. The honour is basically the evaluation of Shri Khandur'sworking style, foresight, vision, policies and people-friendly programmes. The award was granted for security and justice.
The award was presented by noted scientist and former President of India Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, who is popularly known as ?Missile Man? of the nation, at a function in New Delhi on September 22. The award was instituted by leading news channel IBN-7 and news magazine Outlook. The award was named as ?Diamond State Award?. Union Home Minister Shri Shivraj Patil, Minister for Railways Shri Lalu Prasad Yadav, Union Urban Development Minister Shri Jaipal Reddy, former Union Minister Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh Prof. Prem Kumar Dhumal and Delhi'sCM Smt. Sheila Dikshit were also present on the occasion.
Receiving the award Shri Khanduri said the repeated elections in the state affected the developmental activities, as the state witnessed five elections in 17 months and the implementation of Model Code of Conduct prevented the government from carrying out any developmental activity.
