Rawat for inclusion of Saharanpur in Uttarakhand

MEERUT: Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Rawat’s support for inclusion of Saharanpur in the hill state has triggered a fresh round of debate on the issue.

“Saharanpur has social and business relations with Uttarakhand, therefore we earlier demanded its inclusion it in Uttarakhand. At the time of formation of the new state, we tried a lot for its inclusion but it could not materialise,” said Rawat while speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of a programme in Saharanpur on Tuesday.

Rawat said the traders’ body – District Chamber of Commerce – also supported its inclusion. Many social and traders’ organisations have been demanding Saharanpur’s inclusion in the hill state.

Hemant Joshi, secretary of Saharanpur Club, said: “A large part of Uttarakhand depends on supply of commodities from Saharanpur. Under such circumstances, inclusion of Saharanpur in the hill state would be beneficial for people of the district.”

Mukund Manohar, mahanagar president of Vyapar Mandal, said initially people opposed inclusion of the district in Uttarakhand, but over a period of time they have understood its benefits.

Saharanpur is known for hosiery, grocery, wood carving, furniture business and many districts of Uttarakhand are still potential buyers of these products.

Recently, there was a buzz on ‘inclusion’ in social media that triggered speculations that Saharanpur and Bijnore could be included in Uttarakhand.

Now, Rawat’s statement has again sparked a fresh round of debate on the issue.