The Executive | Uttarakhand State PSC (UKPSC): Preparation - UKPSC (Uttarakhand) PDF Download

 Page 1


The Executiv e of Uttarakhand
The Executiv e
The executiv e in Uttarakhand includes the Go v ernor as the head of the state. It also
includes the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. Apart from this, v arious depart-
men ts forming the Secretariat and their executing institutions, called Directorates, are
also imp ortan t parts of the executiv e.
Go v ernor - Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand
The go v ernor of Uttarakhand is app oin ted b y the Presiden t of India for a term of fiv e
y ears and holds o?ice at the Presiden t’s pleasure. The go v ernor is the de jure head of the
state go v ernmen t; all its executiv e actions are tak en in the go v ernor’s name. Ho w ev er, the
go v ernor m ust act on the advice of the p opularly elected Cabinet of Uttarakhand, headed
b y the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, who th us holds de facto executiv e authorit y at
the state lev el. The Constitution of India also emp o w ers the go v ernor to act up on his
or her o wn discretion, suc h as the abilit y to app oin t or dismiss a ministry , recommend
Presiden t’s rule, or reserv e bills for the Presiden t’s assen t. The go v ernor of Uttarakhand
has his o?icial residence at the Ra j Bha v an in the state capital of Dehradun.
Uttarakhand w as created on 9 No v em b er 2000, when it w as carv ed out from the Hi-
mala y an districts of Uttar Pradesh. Eigh t p eople ha v e serv ed as the state’s Go v ernor, six
are men and t w o w omen, including the incum b en t Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Gurmit Singh.
With the creation of the State of Uttarakhand, the Ra j Bha w an w as temp orarily estab-
lished at Bijapur House situated on New Can tonmen t Road, Dehradun. Subsequen tly ,
the Circuit House, Dehradun w as redesignated as Ra j Bha w an, and the first Go v ernor,
Shri Surjit Singh Barnala, shifted there on 25th Decem b er 2000. The presen t Ra j Bha w an
(earlier kno wn as Circuit House) w as built in 1902. It w as then called ”Court House,”
where the then British Go v ernor of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh) often used to
reside. F rom time to time, v arious Presiden ts of India and almost all P rime Ministers, so
far, ha v e sta y ed in this historic building. The Ra j Bha w an is situated at a heigh t of 2305
ft. from sea lev el.
Uttarakhand is one of the few states in the coun try whic h can b oast of t w o Ra j Bha w ans.
The second Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand is situated in Nainital. In the pre-Indep endence
era, Nainital serv ed as the summer capital of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh), and
this b eautiful building, built lik e a Scottish castle, w as c hristened as the ”Go v ernmen t
House. ” After Indep endence, it w as renamed as Ra j Bha w an. The foundation stone of
Nainital Ra j Bha w an w as laid on 27th April 1897, and the construction to ok t w o y ears
1
Page 2


The Executiv e of Uttarakhand
The Executiv e
The executiv e in Uttarakhand includes the Go v ernor as the head of the state. It also
includes the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. Apart from this, v arious depart-
men ts forming the Secretariat and their executing institutions, called Directorates, are
also imp ortan t parts of the executiv e.
Go v ernor - Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand
The go v ernor of Uttarakhand is app oin ted b y the Presiden t of India for a term of fiv e
y ears and holds o?ice at the Presiden t’s pleasure. The go v ernor is the de jure head of the
state go v ernmen t; all its executiv e actions are tak en in the go v ernor’s name. Ho w ev er, the
go v ernor m ust act on the advice of the p opularly elected Cabinet of Uttarakhand, headed
b y the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, who th us holds de facto executiv e authorit y at
the state lev el. The Constitution of India also emp o w ers the go v ernor to act up on his
or her o wn discretion, suc h as the abilit y to app oin t or dismiss a ministry , recommend
Presiden t’s rule, or reserv e bills for the Presiden t’s assen t. The go v ernor of Uttarakhand
has his o?icial residence at the Ra j Bha v an in the state capital of Dehradun.
Uttarakhand w as created on 9 No v em b er 2000, when it w as carv ed out from the Hi-
mala y an districts of Uttar Pradesh. Eigh t p eople ha v e serv ed as the state’s Go v ernor, six
are men and t w o w omen, including the incum b en t Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Gurmit Singh.
With the creation of the State of Uttarakhand, the Ra j Bha w an w as temp orarily estab-
lished at Bijapur House situated on New Can tonmen t Road, Dehradun. Subsequen tly ,
the Circuit House, Dehradun w as redesignated as Ra j Bha w an, and the first Go v ernor,
Shri Surjit Singh Barnala, shifted there on 25th Decem b er 2000. The presen t Ra j Bha w an
(earlier kno wn as Circuit House) w as built in 1902. It w as then called ”Court House,”
where the then British Go v ernor of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh) often used to
reside. F rom time to time, v arious Presiden ts of India and almost all P rime Ministers, so
far, ha v e sta y ed in this historic building. The Ra j Bha w an is situated at a heigh t of 2305
ft. from sea lev el.
Uttarakhand is one of the few states in the coun try whic h can b oast of t w o Ra j Bha w ans.
The second Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand is situated in Nainital. In the pre-Indep endence
era, Nainital serv ed as the summer capital of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh), and
this b eautiful building, built lik e a Scottish castle, w as c hristened as the ”Go v ernmen t
House. ” After Indep endence, it w as renamed as Ra j Bha w an. The foundation stone of
Nainital Ra j Bha w an w as laid on 27th April 1897, and the construction to ok t w o y ears
1
to complete. It is built on a Europ ean pattern and based on Gothic Arc hitecture. The
designers of Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) w ere Arc hitect Stev ens and the Executiv e Engineer
F O W Ortel. Burma teak has b een used in conjunction with other v ersions of teak.
Lo cal stones ha v e b een used in its construction, with Ashler’s finishing. Some of the
privileged o ccupan ts of the Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) in the pre-Indep endence era include
Sir An ton y Mac Ddonald, Sir James, Sir John Misten, Sir Harcourt Butler, who w ere
the then Go v ernors of the United Pro vinces. In the p ost-Indep endence p erio d, Sm t.
Saro jini Naidu, the first Go v ernor of Uttar Pradesh, w as the first o ccupan t of this historic
mon umen t.
List of Go v ernors of Uttarakhand
F o llo wing is the list of the go v ernors of Uttarakhand since its inception on 9 No v em b er
2000:
Name (birth-
death)
T erm Start T erm End T en ure
Surjit Singh Bar-
nala (19 25-2017)
9 No v em b er
2000
7 Jan uary
2003
2 y ears, 1 mon th
and 29 da ys
Sudarshan Agarw al
(1931-2019)
8 Jan uary
2003
28 Octob er
2007
4 y ears, 9
mon ths and 20
da ys
Ban w ari Lal Joshi
(1936-2017)
29 Octob er
2007
5 A ugust
2009
1 y ear, 9 mon ths
and 7 da ys
Margaret Alv a
(b orn 1 942)
6 A ugust
2009
14 Ma y 2012 2 y ears, 9
mon ths and 8
da ys
Aziz Qureshi (b orn
1940)
15 Ma y 2012 7 Jan uary
2015
2 y ears, 7
mon ths and 23
da ys
Krishan Kan t P aul
(b orn 1 948)
8 Jan uary
2015
25 A ugust
2018
3 y ears, 7
mon ths and 17
da ys
Bab y Rani Maury a
(b orn 1 956)
26 A ugust
2018
15 Septem b er
2021
3 y ears and 20
da ys
Lt. Gen. (Retd.)
Gurmit Singh
(b orn 1 956)
15 Septem b er
2021
Incum b en t
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course Nainital
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course w as dev elop ed in the y ear 1926, during ’RAJ’ da ys as a part of
the 220-acre Ra j Bha w an estate, also kno wn as Go v ernmen t House. This course w as the
exclusiv e preserv e of the erst while United Pro vince and subsequen tly Uttar Pradesh. In
the y ear 1994, the course w as op ened to the public. In No v em b er 2000, after the creation
of Uttaranc hal (no w Uttarakhand), the golf course b ecame a part of the residence of the
Go v ernor of the new state.
2
Page 3


The Executiv e of Uttarakhand
The Executiv e
The executiv e in Uttarakhand includes the Go v ernor as the head of the state. It also
includes the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. Apart from this, v arious depart-
men ts forming the Secretariat and their executing institutions, called Directorates, are
also imp ortan t parts of the executiv e.
Go v ernor - Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand
The go v ernor of Uttarakhand is app oin ted b y the Presiden t of India for a term of fiv e
y ears and holds o?ice at the Presiden t’s pleasure. The go v ernor is the de jure head of the
state go v ernmen t; all its executiv e actions are tak en in the go v ernor’s name. Ho w ev er, the
go v ernor m ust act on the advice of the p opularly elected Cabinet of Uttarakhand, headed
b y the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, who th us holds de facto executiv e authorit y at
the state lev el. The Constitution of India also emp o w ers the go v ernor to act up on his
or her o wn discretion, suc h as the abilit y to app oin t or dismiss a ministry , recommend
Presiden t’s rule, or reserv e bills for the Presiden t’s assen t. The go v ernor of Uttarakhand
has his o?icial residence at the Ra j Bha v an in the state capital of Dehradun.
Uttarakhand w as created on 9 No v em b er 2000, when it w as carv ed out from the Hi-
mala y an districts of Uttar Pradesh. Eigh t p eople ha v e serv ed as the state’s Go v ernor, six
are men and t w o w omen, including the incum b en t Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Gurmit Singh.
With the creation of the State of Uttarakhand, the Ra j Bha w an w as temp orarily estab-
lished at Bijapur House situated on New Can tonmen t Road, Dehradun. Subsequen tly ,
the Circuit House, Dehradun w as redesignated as Ra j Bha w an, and the first Go v ernor,
Shri Surjit Singh Barnala, shifted there on 25th Decem b er 2000. The presen t Ra j Bha w an
(earlier kno wn as Circuit House) w as built in 1902. It w as then called ”Court House,”
where the then British Go v ernor of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh) often used to
reside. F rom time to time, v arious Presiden ts of India and almost all P rime Ministers, so
far, ha v e sta y ed in this historic building. The Ra j Bha w an is situated at a heigh t of 2305
ft. from sea lev el.
Uttarakhand is one of the few states in the coun try whic h can b oast of t w o Ra j Bha w ans.
The second Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand is situated in Nainital. In the pre-Indep endence
era, Nainital serv ed as the summer capital of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh), and
this b eautiful building, built lik e a Scottish castle, w as c hristened as the ”Go v ernmen t
House. ” After Indep endence, it w as renamed as Ra j Bha w an. The foundation stone of
Nainital Ra j Bha w an w as laid on 27th April 1897, and the construction to ok t w o y ears
1
to complete. It is built on a Europ ean pattern and based on Gothic Arc hitecture. The
designers of Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) w ere Arc hitect Stev ens and the Executiv e Engineer
F O W Ortel. Burma teak has b een used in conjunction with other v ersions of teak.
Lo cal stones ha v e b een used in its construction, with Ashler’s finishing. Some of the
privileged o ccupan ts of the Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) in the pre-Indep endence era include
Sir An ton y Mac Ddonald, Sir James, Sir John Misten, Sir Harcourt Butler, who w ere
the then Go v ernors of the United Pro vinces. In the p ost-Indep endence p erio d, Sm t.
Saro jini Naidu, the first Go v ernor of Uttar Pradesh, w as the first o ccupan t of this historic
mon umen t.
List of Go v ernors of Uttarakhand
F o llo wing is the list of the go v ernors of Uttarakhand since its inception on 9 No v em b er
2000:
Name (birth-
death)
T erm Start T erm End T en ure
Surjit Singh Bar-
nala (19 25-2017)
9 No v em b er
2000
7 Jan uary
2003
2 y ears, 1 mon th
and 29 da ys
Sudarshan Agarw al
(1931-2019)
8 Jan uary
2003
28 Octob er
2007
4 y ears, 9
mon ths and 20
da ys
Ban w ari Lal Joshi
(1936-2017)
29 Octob er
2007
5 A ugust
2009
1 y ear, 9 mon ths
and 7 da ys
Margaret Alv a
(b orn 1 942)
6 A ugust
2009
14 Ma y 2012 2 y ears, 9
mon ths and 8
da ys
Aziz Qureshi (b orn
1940)
15 Ma y 2012 7 Jan uary
2015
2 y ears, 7
mon ths and 23
da ys
Krishan Kan t P aul
(b orn 1 948)
8 Jan uary
2015
25 A ugust
2018
3 y ears, 7
mon ths and 17
da ys
Bab y Rani Maury a
(b orn 1 956)
26 A ugust
2018
15 Septem b er
2021
3 y ears and 20
da ys
Lt. Gen. (Retd.)
Gurmit Singh
(b orn 1 956)
15 Septem b er
2021
Incum b en t
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course Nainital
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course w as dev elop ed in the y ear 1926, during ’RAJ’ da ys as a part of
the 220-acre Ra j Bha w an estate, also kno wn as Go v ernmen t House. This course w as the
exclusiv e preserv e of the erst while United Pro vince and subsequen tly Uttar Pradesh. In
the y ear 1994, the course w as op ened to the public. In No v em b er 2000, after the creation
of Uttaranc hal (no w Uttarakhand), the golf course b ecame a part of the residence of the
Go v ernor of the new state.
2
Ra j Bha w an Golf Club
Honorary Mem b ers - F ollo wing are the Honorary Mem b ers of RBGC (Ra j Bha w an Golf
Club): Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Chief Justice of Uttarakhand, Chief Secretary of
Uttarakhand, GOC-in-C, Cen tral Command, GOC UP Area, Director General of P olice,
Uttarakhand, all presen t and former mem b ers of the Executiv e Committee.
Ex-O?icio Role of Go v ernor
The Go v ernor of Uttarakhand is also the Chancellor of v arious Univ ersities in the State
and exercises his p o w ers delegated to him under the resp ectiv e A cts and Statutes of the
Univ ersities.
The Go v ernor is also the ex-o?icio Presiden t of the Indian Red Cross So ciet y (IR CS),
Uttarakhand Branc h, and Uttarakhand State Council for Child W elfare (USCCW).
The Go v ernor is the Chairman of the Uttarakhand Sainik Punarv as Sanstha (USPS).
State Univ ersities in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand has a glorious history in the field of higher education. As of 2025, the state
hosts 44 univ ersities, including 1 Cen tral Univ ersit y , 12 State Univ ersities, 3 Deemed
Univ ersities, and 28 Priv ate Univ ersities. A dditionally , there are 70 state colleges, 15
subsidized colleges, and 266 priv ate educational institutions, with appro ximately 3,00,000
studen ts enrolled in v arious curricula related to general, v o cational, and tec hnical edu-
cation. F our State Univ ersities (Kumaon, Do on, Shri Dev Suman Uttarakhand, and
Hem w ati Nandan Bah uguna Garh w al) come under the higher education sector. The A ct
has b een passed in the y ear 2011 for the establishmen t of Uttarakhand National La w
Univ ersit y , whic h is prop osed to b e established in the future. There are three institu-
tions of national imp ortance (Indian Institute of T ec hnology , Ro ork ee, National Institute
of T ec hnology , Srinagar and Indian Institute of Managemen t, Kashipur) in the state.
The Go v ernor shall b e the Chancellor of the Univ ersit y . He shall, b y virtue of his o?ice,
b e the Head of the Univ ersit y and shall, when presen t, preside at the con v o cation of the
Univ ersit y . Ev ery prop osal for confermen t of an honorary degree shall b e sub ject to the
confirmation of the Chancellor. It shall b e the dut y of the Vice-Chancellor to furnish
suc h information or records relating to the administration of the affairs of the Univ ersit y
as the Chancellor ma y call for. The Chancellor shall ha v e suc h other p o w ers as ma y b e
conferred on him b y or under the Univ ersit y A ct or the Regulations.
1. Kumaon Univ ersit y , Nainital
2. G.B. P an t Univ ersit y of Agriculture & T ec hnology , P an tnagar
3. Uttarakhand Sanskrit Univ ersit y , Haridw ar
4. Do on Univ ersit y , Dehradun
5. Uttarakhand T ec hnical Univ ersit y , Dehradun
6. Uttarakhand Op en Univ ersit y , Haldw ani
3
Page 4


The Executiv e of Uttarakhand
The Executiv e
The executiv e in Uttarakhand includes the Go v ernor as the head of the state. It also
includes the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. Apart from this, v arious depart-
men ts forming the Secretariat and their executing institutions, called Directorates, are
also imp ortan t parts of the executiv e.
Go v ernor - Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand
The go v ernor of Uttarakhand is app oin ted b y the Presiden t of India for a term of fiv e
y ears and holds o?ice at the Presiden t’s pleasure. The go v ernor is the de jure head of the
state go v ernmen t; all its executiv e actions are tak en in the go v ernor’s name. Ho w ev er, the
go v ernor m ust act on the advice of the p opularly elected Cabinet of Uttarakhand, headed
b y the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, who th us holds de facto executiv e authorit y at
the state lev el. The Constitution of India also emp o w ers the go v ernor to act up on his
or her o wn discretion, suc h as the abilit y to app oin t or dismiss a ministry , recommend
Presiden t’s rule, or reserv e bills for the Presiden t’s assen t. The go v ernor of Uttarakhand
has his o?icial residence at the Ra j Bha v an in the state capital of Dehradun.
Uttarakhand w as created on 9 No v em b er 2000, when it w as carv ed out from the Hi-
mala y an districts of Uttar Pradesh. Eigh t p eople ha v e serv ed as the state’s Go v ernor, six
are men and t w o w omen, including the incum b en t Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Gurmit Singh.
With the creation of the State of Uttarakhand, the Ra j Bha w an w as temp orarily estab-
lished at Bijapur House situated on New Can tonmen t Road, Dehradun. Subsequen tly ,
the Circuit House, Dehradun w as redesignated as Ra j Bha w an, and the first Go v ernor,
Shri Surjit Singh Barnala, shifted there on 25th Decem b er 2000. The presen t Ra j Bha w an
(earlier kno wn as Circuit House) w as built in 1902. It w as then called ”Court House,”
where the then British Go v ernor of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh) often used to
reside. F rom time to time, v arious Presiden ts of India and almost all P rime Ministers, so
far, ha v e sta y ed in this historic building. The Ra j Bha w an is situated at a heigh t of 2305
ft. from sea lev el.
Uttarakhand is one of the few states in the coun try whic h can b oast of t w o Ra j Bha w ans.
The second Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand is situated in Nainital. In the pre-Indep endence
era, Nainital serv ed as the summer capital of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh), and
this b eautiful building, built lik e a Scottish castle, w as c hristened as the ”Go v ernmen t
House. ” After Indep endence, it w as renamed as Ra j Bha w an. The foundation stone of
Nainital Ra j Bha w an w as laid on 27th April 1897, and the construction to ok t w o y ears
1
to complete. It is built on a Europ ean pattern and based on Gothic Arc hitecture. The
designers of Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) w ere Arc hitect Stev ens and the Executiv e Engineer
F O W Ortel. Burma teak has b een used in conjunction with other v ersions of teak.
Lo cal stones ha v e b een used in its construction, with Ashler’s finishing. Some of the
privileged o ccupan ts of the Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) in the pre-Indep endence era include
Sir An ton y Mac Ddonald, Sir James, Sir John Misten, Sir Harcourt Butler, who w ere
the then Go v ernors of the United Pro vinces. In the p ost-Indep endence p erio d, Sm t.
Saro jini Naidu, the first Go v ernor of Uttar Pradesh, w as the first o ccupan t of this historic
mon umen t.
List of Go v ernors of Uttarakhand
F o llo wing is the list of the go v ernors of Uttarakhand since its inception on 9 No v em b er
2000:
Name (birth-
death)
T erm Start T erm End T en ure
Surjit Singh Bar-
nala (19 25-2017)
9 No v em b er
2000
7 Jan uary
2003
2 y ears, 1 mon th
and 29 da ys
Sudarshan Agarw al
(1931-2019)
8 Jan uary
2003
28 Octob er
2007
4 y ears, 9
mon ths and 20
da ys
Ban w ari Lal Joshi
(1936-2017)
29 Octob er
2007
5 A ugust
2009
1 y ear, 9 mon ths
and 7 da ys
Margaret Alv a
(b orn 1 942)
6 A ugust
2009
14 Ma y 2012 2 y ears, 9
mon ths and 8
da ys
Aziz Qureshi (b orn
1940)
15 Ma y 2012 7 Jan uary
2015
2 y ears, 7
mon ths and 23
da ys
Krishan Kan t P aul
(b orn 1 948)
8 Jan uary
2015
25 A ugust
2018
3 y ears, 7
mon ths and 17
da ys
Bab y Rani Maury a
(b orn 1 956)
26 A ugust
2018
15 Septem b er
2021
3 y ears and 20
da ys
Lt. Gen. (Retd.)
Gurmit Singh
(b orn 1 956)
15 Septem b er
2021
Incum b en t
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course Nainital
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course w as dev elop ed in the y ear 1926, during ’RAJ’ da ys as a part of
the 220-acre Ra j Bha w an estate, also kno wn as Go v ernmen t House. This course w as the
exclusiv e preserv e of the erst while United Pro vince and subsequen tly Uttar Pradesh. In
the y ear 1994, the course w as op ened to the public. In No v em b er 2000, after the creation
of Uttaranc hal (no w Uttarakhand), the golf course b ecame a part of the residence of the
Go v ernor of the new state.
2
Ra j Bha w an Golf Club
Honorary Mem b ers - F ollo wing are the Honorary Mem b ers of RBGC (Ra j Bha w an Golf
Club): Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Chief Justice of Uttarakhand, Chief Secretary of
Uttarakhand, GOC-in-C, Cen tral Command, GOC UP Area, Director General of P olice,
Uttarakhand, all presen t and former mem b ers of the Executiv e Committee.
Ex-O?icio Role of Go v ernor
The Go v ernor of Uttarakhand is also the Chancellor of v arious Univ ersities in the State
and exercises his p o w ers delegated to him under the resp ectiv e A cts and Statutes of the
Univ ersities.
The Go v ernor is also the ex-o?icio Presiden t of the Indian Red Cross So ciet y (IR CS),
Uttarakhand Branc h, and Uttarakhand State Council for Child W elfare (USCCW).
The Go v ernor is the Chairman of the Uttarakhand Sainik Punarv as Sanstha (USPS).
State Univ ersities in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand has a glorious history in the field of higher education. As of 2025, the state
hosts 44 univ ersities, including 1 Cen tral Univ ersit y , 12 State Univ ersities, 3 Deemed
Univ ersities, and 28 Priv ate Univ ersities. A dditionally , there are 70 state colleges, 15
subsidized colleges, and 266 priv ate educational institutions, with appro ximately 3,00,000
studen ts enrolled in v arious curricula related to general, v o cational, and tec hnical edu-
cation. F our State Univ ersities (Kumaon, Do on, Shri Dev Suman Uttarakhand, and
Hem w ati Nandan Bah uguna Garh w al) come under the higher education sector. The A ct
has b een passed in the y ear 2011 for the establishmen t of Uttarakhand National La w
Univ ersit y , whic h is prop osed to b e established in the future. There are three institu-
tions of national imp ortance (Indian Institute of T ec hnology , Ro ork ee, National Institute
of T ec hnology , Srinagar and Indian Institute of Managemen t, Kashipur) in the state.
The Go v ernor shall b e the Chancellor of the Univ ersit y . He shall, b y virtue of his o?ice,
b e the Head of the Univ ersit y and shall, when presen t, preside at the con v o cation of the
Univ ersit y . Ev ery prop osal for confermen t of an honorary degree shall b e sub ject to the
confirmation of the Chancellor. It shall b e the dut y of the Vice-Chancellor to furnish
suc h information or records relating to the administration of the affairs of the Univ ersit y
as the Chancellor ma y call for. The Chancellor shall ha v e suc h other p o w ers as ma y b e
conferred on him b y or under the Univ ersit y A ct or the Regulations.
1. Kumaon Univ ersit y , Nainital
2. G.B. P an t Univ ersit y of Agriculture & T ec hnology , P an tnagar
3. Uttarakhand Sanskrit Univ ersit y , Haridw ar
4. Do on Univ ersit y , Dehradun
5. Uttarakhand T ec hnical Univ ersit y , Dehradun
6. Uttarakhand Op en Univ ersit y , Haldw ani
3
7. Uttarakhand A yurv ed Univ ersit y , Dehradun
8. Uttarakhand Univ ersit y of Horticulture & F orestry , Bharsar
9. Shri Dev Suman Uttarakhand Univ ersit y , Badshahithaul, T ehri Garh w al
10. Hem w ati Nandan Bah uguna Medical Education Univ ersit y , Dehradun
11. Uttarakhand Residen tial Univ ersit y , Almora
12. V eer Chandra Singh Garh w ali Uttarakhand Univ ersit y of Horticulture & F orestry ,
P auri Garh w al
Priv ate Univ ersities set-up in the State
The Go v ernor of Uttarakhand shall b e the Visitor of the Univ ersit y . The Visitor shall,
when presen t, preside at the con v o cation of the Univ ersit y for conferring degrees and
diplomas. The Visitor shall ha v e the follo wing p o w ers, namely:
• T o call for an y pap er or information relating to the affairs of the Univ ersit y .
• On the basis of the information receiv ed b y the Visitor, if he is satisfied that an y
order, pro ceeding, or decision tak en b y an y authorit y of the Univ ersit y is not in
conformit y with the A ct, Statutes, or R ules, he ma y issue suc h directions as he
ma y deem fit in the in terest of the Univ ersit y , and the directions so issued shall b e
complied wit h b y all concerned.
Ev ery prop osal for the confermen t of an honorary degree or distinction shall b e sub ject
to the appro v al of the Visitor.
1. Univ ersit y of P etroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun
2. The ICF AI Univ ersit y , Dehradun
3. Himgiri Zee Univ ersit y , Dehradun
4. Univ ersit y of P atanjali, Haridw ar
5. IMS Unison Univ ersit y , Dehradun
6. DIT Univ ersit y , Dehradun
7. Uttaranc hal Univ ersit y , Dehradun
8. Uttarakhand Graphic Era P arv atiy a Univ ersit y , Dehradun
9. Motherho o d Univ ersit y , Ro ork ee
10. Ras Bihari Bose Subharti Univ ersit y , Dehradun
11. Shri Guru Ram Rai Univ ersit y , Dehradun
12. Himala y an Garh w al Univ ersit y , P auri Garh w al
13. Quan tum Univ ersit y , Ro ork ee
14. Dev Sanskriti Vish w a vidy ala y a, Haridw ar
15. Bhagw an t Global Univ ersit y , K otdw ar
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Page 5


The Executiv e of Uttarakhand
The Executiv e
The executiv e in Uttarakhand includes the Go v ernor as the head of the state. It also
includes the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. Apart from this, v arious depart-
men ts forming the Secretariat and their executing institutions, called Directorates, are
also imp ortan t parts of the executiv e.
Go v ernor - Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand
The go v ernor of Uttarakhand is app oin ted b y the Presiden t of India for a term of fiv e
y ears and holds o?ice at the Presiden t’s pleasure. The go v ernor is the de jure head of the
state go v ernmen t; all its executiv e actions are tak en in the go v ernor’s name. Ho w ev er, the
go v ernor m ust act on the advice of the p opularly elected Cabinet of Uttarakhand, headed
b y the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, who th us holds de facto executiv e authorit y at
the state lev el. The Constitution of India also emp o w ers the go v ernor to act up on his
or her o wn discretion, suc h as the abilit y to app oin t or dismiss a ministry , recommend
Presiden t’s rule, or reserv e bills for the Presiden t’s assen t. The go v ernor of Uttarakhand
has his o?icial residence at the Ra j Bha v an in the state capital of Dehradun.
Uttarakhand w as created on 9 No v em b er 2000, when it w as carv ed out from the Hi-
mala y an districts of Uttar Pradesh. Eigh t p eople ha v e serv ed as the state’s Go v ernor, six
are men and t w o w omen, including the incum b en t Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Gurmit Singh.
With the creation of the State of Uttarakhand, the Ra j Bha w an w as temp orarily estab-
lished at Bijapur House situated on New Can tonmen t Road, Dehradun. Subsequen tly ,
the Circuit House, Dehradun w as redesignated as Ra j Bha w an, and the first Go v ernor,
Shri Surjit Singh Barnala, shifted there on 25th Decem b er 2000. The presen t Ra j Bha w an
(earlier kno wn as Circuit House) w as built in 1902. It w as then called ”Court House,”
where the then British Go v ernor of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh) often used to
reside. F rom time to time, v arious Presiden ts of India and almost all P rime Ministers, so
far, ha v e sta y ed in this historic building. The Ra j Bha w an is situated at a heigh t of 2305
ft. from sea lev el.
Uttarakhand is one of the few states in the coun try whic h can b oast of t w o Ra j Bha w ans.
The second Ra j Bha w an of Uttarakhand is situated in Nainital. In the pre-Indep endence
era, Nainital serv ed as the summer capital of United Pro vinces (no w Uttar Pradesh), and
this b eautiful building, built lik e a Scottish castle, w as c hristened as the ”Go v ernmen t
House. ” After Indep endence, it w as renamed as Ra j Bha w an. The foundation stone of
Nainital Ra j Bha w an w as laid on 27th April 1897, and the construction to ok t w o y ears
1
to complete. It is built on a Europ ean pattern and based on Gothic Arc hitecture. The
designers of Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) w ere Arc hitect Stev ens and the Executiv e Engineer
F O W Ortel. Burma teak has b een used in conjunction with other v ersions of teak.
Lo cal stones ha v e b een used in its construction, with Ashler’s finishing. Some of the
privileged o ccupan ts of the Ra j Bha w an (Nainital) in the pre-Indep endence era include
Sir An ton y Mac Ddonald, Sir James, Sir John Misten, Sir Harcourt Butler, who w ere
the then Go v ernors of the United Pro vinces. In the p ost-Indep endence p erio d, Sm t.
Saro jini Naidu, the first Go v ernor of Uttar Pradesh, w as the first o ccupan t of this historic
mon umen t.
List of Go v ernors of Uttarakhand
F o llo wing is the list of the go v ernors of Uttarakhand since its inception on 9 No v em b er
2000:
Name (birth-
death)
T erm Start T erm End T en ure
Surjit Singh Bar-
nala (19 25-2017)
9 No v em b er
2000
7 Jan uary
2003
2 y ears, 1 mon th
and 29 da ys
Sudarshan Agarw al
(1931-2019)
8 Jan uary
2003
28 Octob er
2007
4 y ears, 9
mon ths and 20
da ys
Ban w ari Lal Joshi
(1936-2017)
29 Octob er
2007
5 A ugust
2009
1 y ear, 9 mon ths
and 7 da ys
Margaret Alv a
(b orn 1 942)
6 A ugust
2009
14 Ma y 2012 2 y ears, 9
mon ths and 8
da ys
Aziz Qureshi (b orn
1940)
15 Ma y 2012 7 Jan uary
2015
2 y ears, 7
mon ths and 23
da ys
Krishan Kan t P aul
(b orn 1 948)
8 Jan uary
2015
25 A ugust
2018
3 y ears, 7
mon ths and 17
da ys
Bab y Rani Maury a
(b orn 1 956)
26 A ugust
2018
15 Septem b er
2021
3 y ears and 20
da ys
Lt. Gen. (Retd.)
Gurmit Singh
(b orn 1 956)
15 Septem b er
2021
Incum b en t
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course Nainital
Ra j Bha w an Golf Course w as dev elop ed in the y ear 1926, during ’RAJ’ da ys as a part of
the 220-acre Ra j Bha w an estate, also kno wn as Go v ernmen t House. This course w as the
exclusiv e preserv e of the erst while United Pro vince and subsequen tly Uttar Pradesh. In
the y ear 1994, the course w as op ened to the public. In No v em b er 2000, after the creation
of Uttaranc hal (no w Uttarakhand), the golf course b ecame a part of the residence of the
Go v ernor of the new state.
2
Ra j Bha w an Golf Club
Honorary Mem b ers - F ollo wing are the Honorary Mem b ers of RBGC (Ra j Bha w an Golf
Club): Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Chief Justice of Uttarakhand, Chief Secretary of
Uttarakhand, GOC-in-C, Cen tral Command, GOC UP Area, Director General of P olice,
Uttarakhand, all presen t and former mem b ers of the Executiv e Committee.
Ex-O?icio Role of Go v ernor
The Go v ernor of Uttarakhand is also the Chancellor of v arious Univ ersities in the State
and exercises his p o w ers delegated to him under the resp ectiv e A cts and Statutes of the
Univ ersities.
The Go v ernor is also the ex-o?icio Presiden t of the Indian Red Cross So ciet y (IR CS),
Uttarakhand Branc h, and Uttarakhand State Council for Child W elfare (USCCW).
The Go v ernor is the Chairman of the Uttarakhand Sainik Punarv as Sanstha (USPS).
State Univ ersities in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand has a glorious history in the field of higher education. As of 2025, the state
hosts 44 univ ersities, including 1 Cen tral Univ ersit y , 12 State Univ ersities, 3 Deemed
Univ ersities, and 28 Priv ate Univ ersities. A dditionally , there are 70 state colleges, 15
subsidized colleges, and 266 priv ate educational institutions, with appro ximately 3,00,000
studen ts enrolled in v arious curricula related to general, v o cational, and tec hnical edu-
cation. F our State Univ ersities (Kumaon, Do on, Shri Dev Suman Uttarakhand, and
Hem w ati Nandan Bah uguna Garh w al) come under the higher education sector. The A ct
has b een passed in the y ear 2011 for the establishmen t of Uttarakhand National La w
Univ ersit y , whic h is prop osed to b e established in the future. There are three institu-
tions of national imp ortance (Indian Institute of T ec hnology , Ro ork ee, National Institute
of T ec hnology , Srinagar and Indian Institute of Managemen t, Kashipur) in the state.
The Go v ernor shall b e the Chancellor of the Univ ersit y . He shall, b y virtue of his o?ice,
b e the Head of the Univ ersit y and shall, when presen t, preside at the con v o cation of the
Univ ersit y . Ev ery prop osal for confermen t of an honorary degree shall b e sub ject to the
confirmation of the Chancellor. It shall b e the dut y of the Vice-Chancellor to furnish
suc h information or records relating to the administration of the affairs of the Univ ersit y
as the Chancellor ma y call for. The Chancellor shall ha v e suc h other p o w ers as ma y b e
conferred on him b y or under the Univ ersit y A ct or the Regulations.
1. Kumaon Univ ersit y , Nainital
2. G.B. P an t Univ ersit y of Agriculture & T ec hnology , P an tnagar
3. Uttarakhand Sanskrit Univ ersit y , Haridw ar
4. Do on Univ ersit y , Dehradun
5. Uttarakhand T ec hnical Univ ersit y , Dehradun
6. Uttarakhand Op en Univ ersit y , Haldw ani
3
7. Uttarakhand A yurv ed Univ ersit y , Dehradun
8. Uttarakhand Univ ersit y of Horticulture & F orestry , Bharsar
9. Shri Dev Suman Uttarakhand Univ ersit y , Badshahithaul, T ehri Garh w al
10. Hem w ati Nandan Bah uguna Medical Education Univ ersit y , Dehradun
11. Uttarakhand Residen tial Univ ersit y , Almora
12. V eer Chandra Singh Garh w ali Uttarakhand Univ ersit y of Horticulture & F orestry ,
P auri Garh w al
Priv ate Univ ersities set-up in the State
The Go v ernor of Uttarakhand shall b e the Visitor of the Univ ersit y . The Visitor shall,
when presen t, preside at the con v o cation of the Univ ersit y for conferring degrees and
diplomas. The Visitor shall ha v e the follo wing p o w ers, namely:
• T o call for an y pap er or information relating to the affairs of the Univ ersit y .
• On the basis of the information receiv ed b y the Visitor, if he is satisfied that an y
order, pro ceeding, or decision tak en b y an y authorit y of the Univ ersit y is not in
conformit y with the A ct, Statutes, or R ules, he ma y issue suc h directions as he
ma y deem fit in the in terest of the Univ ersit y , and the directions so issued shall b e
complied wit h b y all concerned.
Ev ery prop osal for the confermen t of an honorary degree or distinction shall b e sub ject
to the appro v al of the Visitor.
1. Univ ersit y of P etroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun
2. The ICF AI Univ ersit y , Dehradun
3. Himgiri Zee Univ ersit y , Dehradun
4. Univ ersit y of P atanjali, Haridw ar
5. IMS Unison Univ ersit y , Dehradun
6. DIT Univ ersit y , Dehradun
7. Uttaranc hal Univ ersit y , Dehradun
8. Uttarakhand Graphic Era P arv atiy a Univ ersit y , Dehradun
9. Motherho o d Univ ersit y , Ro ork ee
10. Ras Bihari Bose Subharti Univ ersit y , Dehradun
11. Shri Guru Ram Rai Univ ersit y , Dehradun
12. Himala y an Garh w al Univ ersit y , P auri Garh w al
13. Quan tum Univ ersit y , Ro ork ee
14. Dev Sanskriti Vish w a vidy ala y a, Haridw ar
15. Bhagw an t Global Univ ersit y , K otdw ar
4
16. Haridw ar Univ ersit y , Ro ork ee
17. Dev Bho omi Uttarakhand Univ ersit y , Dehradun
18. Graphic Era Hill Univ ersit y , Dehradun
19. Sardar Bhagw an Singh Univ ersit y , Dehradun
Ra j Bha w an Publication
Uttar akhand: Inspiring Initiatives , published b y Ra j Bha w an, Uttarakhand, is a picto-
rial accoun t depicting the steps tak en for the forw ard gro wth of this up coming state of
Uttarakhand that has a w ealth of bio div ersit y and a w onderful w orkforce, b esides b eing
a treasure house of natural splendor. The author has captured the journey of Hon’ble
Go v ernor Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Gurmit Singh, in the con text of dev elopmen tal asp ects of
the state while aiming to stress up on the spheres that could mak e Uttarakhand a mo del
state w orth em ulating.
Hon’ble Go v ernor’s k een in terest in dev eloping the State as a h ub of excellence in higher
education is quite visible and has b een discussed at length in this w ork. Despite ha ving
12 state univ ersities and n umerous priv ate institutions, c hallenges p ersisted in the sphere
of higher education. This prop elled the Hon’ble Go v ernor to tak e sev eral initiativ es as
Chancellor of these Univ ersities to motiv ate Vice Chancellors, teac hing staff, researc h
sc holars, and studen ts. Comp etitions, a w ards, and researc h incen tiv es w ere instituted to
encourage excellence, with a fo cus on applied researc h and paten t filings.
The w ork done under Hon’ble Go v ernor’s directions to enhance and enric h the Ra j
Bha w an at Dehradun and Nainital also finds a place in the b o ok.
Stress has b een laid up on promoting Uttarakhand as a ”Flo w er State” and a destination
for medical, spiritual, and adv en ture tourism. The imp ortance of Y oga for our state and
its role in making Uttarakhand a destination for p eople from all o v er the w orld has also
b een emphasized.
The b o ok highligh ts the Hon’ble Go v ernor’s endea v ors to ensure all-round progress of the
b eautiful and unique Himala y an state of Uttarakhand.
Chief Minister of Uttarakhand - The CMO
The c hief minister of the state of Uttarakhand is the head of the Go v ernmen t of Ut-
tarakhand. As p er the Constitution of India, the Go v ernor of Uttarakhand is the state’s
de jure head, but de facto executiv e authorit y rests with the c hief minister. F ollo wing
elections to the Uttarakhand Legislativ e Assem bly , the go v ernor usually in vites the part y
(or coalition) with a ma jorit y of seats to form the go v ernmen t. The go v ernor app oin ts
the c hief minister, whose council of ministers are collectiv ely resp onsible to the assem bly .
Giv en that he has the confidence o f the a ssem bly , the c hief minister’s term is for fiv e
y ears and is sub ject to no term limits.
Since the formation of the state, 10 p eople ha v e serv ed as the state’s c hief minister, across
fiv e assem bly terms; 7 of those b elong to the Bharatiy a Janata P art y , including the curren t
5