“Uttaranchal Utthan Parishad has been serving the deprived and downtrodden in remote areas of Uttarakhand for more than two decades. Serving the poor and helpless is the greatest service to Bharat Mata. The society today needs the kinds of services that the Uttaranchal Utthan Parishad is doing through various activities,” said Swami Rajrajeshwaranand. He was speaking at the bhoomipujan ceremony of Uttaranchal Utthan Parishad’s new office in Jogiwala, Dehradun on September 20. Besides Chief Minister Dr Ramesh Pokhariyal ‘Nishank’ and his cabinet colleagues many people from different sections of the society also graced the occasion.
Uttaranchal Utthan Parishad was formed by veteran RSS activist Dr Nityanand to carry out service activities in the hilly region of the then undivided Uttar Pradesh. “The ideology the Parishad has accepted, the work-technique it has evolved, the attitude it has cultivated among its activists, the policies and programmes it has adopted, the campaigns it has undertaken, every one of these is directed towards social service and nation building. It is obvious the RSS has captured the hearts of all patriotic people, cutting across caste, creed and other parties. Society is the idol, which the activists of RSS worship by conducting various service activities everyday. Social service for swayamsewaks is a sacred vow. RSS is working with a determination to take Bharat to prosperity and the pristine glory through social service,” Swami Rajrajeshwaranand added.
Kshetra Pracharak Shri Shiv Prakash said: “We owe to our society and we inherit the most precious and sacred treasure of culture. So too, we owe to our wealth, strength and knowledge we have received from our society. Hence, it is our duty to repay all such social debts by freely disbursing in the society. Let everyone get equal opportunity. Let no one remains ignorant or neglected. Let all of us be healthy, educated, cultured and capable and secure citizens. Social service to attain this must be conducted with humility. Uttaranchal Utthan Parishad has taken the task of uplift of villages in the field of education, health and harmony, he said.”
Chief Minister Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal “Nishank” said the sacrifice made by the people of Uttarakhand for formation of the new state could not be sidelined and everyone needed to contribute in making the state a model state so that the agitationists’ dreams could be realised. He announced the financial assistance of Rs.11 lakh for the Parishad office. He pointed out that the state was rich in natural resources and the need was that of their scientific and appropriate management and milking. He asserted that more effort was needed in the field of tourism, medicinal plants and power production so that these resources and youth power could be utilised in a proper way. He appreciated the efforts put in by the Parishad in the field of social work, especially the small-scale industry. He said the government would be always on the Parishad’s side in all its efforts.
The Chief Minister also felicitated Shri Deepak Upadhyaya for his contribution to promote organic farming, Shri Vishnu Prasad Semwal for forest conservation, Shri Himmat Singh for treatment through herbal plants and Shri Kishan Singh Bhandari for development of Mushroom cultivation.
State Agriculture Minister Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat also announced the help of Rs 10 lakh from his MLA fund for the Parishad office. Also present on the occasion were Uttaranchal Utthan Parishad president Shri Dayaldhar Joshi, vice president Shri Prem Budakoti, Minister of Drinking Water Shri Prakash Pant, Dr Aditya Arya, Social Welfare Minister Shri Khajan Das, MLAs Shri Ajay Tamta, Shri Premchand Aggarwal and Mayor Shri Vinod Chamoli.
-Ravindra Saini
