Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met with Jayant Singh, Chairman of the Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI), at Uttarakhand Niwas in New Delhi on Monday to review progress on the modern land port project at Banbasa (Gudmi) in Champawat district on the India-Nepal border.
The project is viewed as a key step towards enhancing international connectivity by linking it with the Asian Highway, according to a release.
Discussions also focused on improving border trade, transportation, and infrastructure in border areas of Dharchula and Jhulaghat in Pithoragarh district, which lie along the India-Nepal border.
The Chief Minister stressed that development works should advance with priority given to local needs and public interest, stating, “This, he noted, would promote local products and strengthen the regional economy. It would also ensure better market access for products from border areas, thereby boosting the local economy and creating employment opportunities at the grassroots level.”
He requested the Land Ports Authority of India to ensure the timely and well-organised completion of all ongoing efforts intended to benefit residents of border areas.
Additionally, Dhami met Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri at Kartavya Bhavan in New Delhi to discuss several important matters considering Uttarakhand’s geographical conditions and vulnerability to natural disasters.
The Chief Minister urged that the supply of commercial LPG cylinders be maintained at 100 per cent, as before, to safeguard the smooth, safe, and uninterrupted conduct of the Char Dham Yatra. He highlighted that the yatra, which operates from April to November, draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from across India and abroad, resulting in a significant increase in demand for commercial LPG.