SATV Kathmandu Oct 14: The Uttarakhand government has allowed citizens of Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet residing in the state to register their marriages under the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) framework, provided they possess valid documents issued by their respective authorities.

In a key decision on Monday, the Cabinet led by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami approved an amendment to the online marriage registration process under the UCC to include citizens of Nepal and Bhutan married in the state. The cabinet also gave its nod to the proposal enabling registration of marriages of individuals of Nepalese, Bhutanese, and Tibetan origin residing in Uttarakhand.

According to the government, the decision was necessitated by the increasing number of inter-community marriages between locals and people of Nepalese, Bhutanese, and Tibetan origin in the state. Under the new provisions, besides Aadhaar, Nepalese and Bhutanese citizens will be permitted to register their marriages under UCC norms upon presenting valid certificates issued by the Nepali Mission and the Royal Bhutanese Mission in India, respectively.

These certificates will, however, be valid only for those who have been residing in Uttarakhand for a minimum of 182 days. For citizens of Tibetan origin, a registration certificate issued by the Foreigners Registration Officer will be mandatory.

In another major decision, the Dhami cabinet approved a proposal to lift the ban on private construction in the ‘Frozen Zone’ area of Raipur and its adjoining regions on the eastern flank of Dehradun, where the new state legislature complex is proposed to be built.

According to the cabinet decision, construction of small houses and shops will now be permitted in these areas as specified by the State Housing Development Department, in accordance with a low-density development plan. The move aligns with the government’s long-term plan to shift most of the state capital’s installations to the Raipur block in the coming years.

In its third major decision, the cabinet approved a proposal to convene a special session of the State Assembly to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Uttarakhand’s formation. Chief Minister Dhami has been authorized to finalize the date for this special session, which will mark the state’s silver jubilee year.

Additionally, the cabinet ratified a 15 percent post-tax profit contribution from state public sector undertakings to the government exchequer and approved relaxations in service condition norms for employee promotions.