Why the Uttarakhand Assembly meets at Gairsain: the summer capital in Chamoli

Background

The Assembly session held at Gairsain on 27 and 28 October goes back to a status the hill town gained in 2020. On 8 June 2020 a State government notification named Bhararisain (Gairsain) in Chamoli district as the summer capital of Uttarakhand, after the Governor gave her assent. The notification was signed by the then Chief Secretary, Utpal Kumar Singh. Gairsain had been an emotive issue in the hill State ever since Uttarakhand was created as a separate State on 9 November 2000. The VN Dixit Commission, set up to settle where the permanent capital should be, had favoured Dehradun and set Gairsain aside as prone to earthquakes. A number of Vidhan Sabha sessions have since been held at Gairsain, while Dehradun remains the State capital.