The Dhami government is spending Rs 1,000 crore on advertising to enhance its image, while all the important work remains pending.
कर्ज में डूबा राज्य, लेकिन उत्तराखंड सरकार ने छवि चमकाने विज्ञापन पर खर्च किए 1001 करोड़
If Prime Minister Narendra Modi can spend thousands of crores of rupees to enhance his image, why should the Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states lag behind? Uttarakhand may comprise only one percent of the country’s population, but its Chief Minister, Pushkar Singh Dhami, is spending ₹5.5 million daily on advertising. A Newslaundry report states that before Dhami became Chief Minister, total advertising expenditure was ₹77.71 crore, while after Dhami’s appointment, this amount quadrupled to ₹227.35 crore in 2024-25. The report examines government spending over five years.
In August, when floods ravaged every village in the state, national daily newspapers were filled with advertisements featuring the Prime Minister and Dhami, promoting Uttarakhand as a major tourist destination. Over the past five years, the BJP government has spent ₹1,001.07 crore on advertising. Of this, ₹402 crore was spent on TV advertisements, and the remaining amount was distributed as follows: ₹129.6 crore to newspapers, ₹128.7 crore to news agencies, ₹61.9 crore to digital media, ₹40.4 crore to SMS, and ₹30.9 crore to radio. In total, ₹923 crore was spent across media platforms.
The most striking aspect of this massive media spending is the generous funding of news channels based in Nagaland, Assam, and Odisha, even though these states have no direct connection to Uttarakhand. This comes at a time when the state is reeling under a debt of ₹73,000 crore and struggling to fund disaster relief operations and repair recently damaged critical infrastructure. Why a cash-strapped government is investing its limited resources on channels outside the state is beyond logic.
Politics and Paper Leaks
The most recent scam in the examination world relates to the Uttarakhand Subordinate Services Selection Commission examination held on September 17th. The paper was leaked from an examination center in Haridwar by a candidate named Khalid Malik. He sent the questions from his phone to his sister, an assistant professor in Tehri. Malik was caught and is now behind bars.
Chief Minister Dhami, notorious for using terms like “love jihad,” “land jihad,” and “spit jihad,” coined a new term for it: “copy jihad.” (Ironically, past experience suggests that most of these so-called “copy jihadis” have been Hindus.)
Just two days before the exam, Hakam Singh, a longtime BJP loyalist and the mastermind of the 2021 paper leak, arrived in the city with an “offer” that candidates would be given jobs in exchange for a “fee” of 10 lakh rupees! Hakam Singh is close to former Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat. Surprisingly, he too is now behind bars.
The paper leak in September sparked massive protests, with thousands of people gathering at Dehradun’s Parade Ground under the leadership of Bobby Panwar, a student leader of the “Berojgar Sangh.” With the 2026 assembly elections in mind, Dhami himself arrived and promised a CBI investigation. This is hardly reassuring, as CBI investigations have become a daily occurrence here, and nothing ever comes of them. For example: Eight years ago, former Chief Minister Rawat ordered a CBI investigation into the “National Highway Scam,” in which several officials embezzled farmers’ compensation funds. It was usurped. But nothing has happened in this case so far.
Healthcare in the hands of mafias?
Healthcare in Uttarakhand is in a shambles, even though the government is reportedly spending lakhs of rupees on community health centers (CHCs). On October 1, hundreds of villagers in Bageshwar (Almora district) began an indefinite hunger strike to protest the lack of basic facilities at CHCs. Pregnant women are often turned away without checkups, and young children suffering from serious illnesses are referred to hospitals in distant cities.
Public anger against government apathy erupted when a pregnant woman was forced to give birth on the roadside due to lack of care. Former soldier Bhuwan Kathayat and 85-year-old Bache Singh also joined the protest and demanded assurances from Chief Minister Dhami that sick people would be cared for on a “war footing.”
The case of journalist SMA Kazmi reveals that even major hospitals lack adequate facilities. Kazmi, admitted to Doon Hospital in June, underwent a tracheostomy. A specialist was not consulted. His condition deteriorated, and he had to be put on a ventilator. Only after being admitted to Max Hospital was the fluid from his lungs properly removed. This is the state of the “best” in the state!
Kazmi explained that while the specialists provided excellent care, the general staff and nurses were largely indifferent. Due to a shortage of rooms, he was advised to opt for a “private home care service,” which is quite expensive. Although these providers were not hospital employees, they often influence medical decisions and participate in consultations.
The death of journalist Rajiv Pratap, who ran the YouTube channel “Uttarakhand Live,” has raised serious questions. Rajiv, known for his recent exposes on the state of health services in Uttarkashi, went missing for nearly 10 days and his body was found at Joshiyara Barrage on September 28. The postmortem report revealed internal injuries to the abdomen and chest, which the police attributed to “danger.”
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