As the Uttarakhand government prepares to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in November, the ‘Rules and Implementation Committee’ has submitted the final draft of the new law to promote parity among different communities in the state.

The high-level ‘Rules and Implementation Committee’, led by retired IAS officer Shatrughna Singh, submitted the final draft of the UCC Uttarakhand 2024 Act to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami at his secretariat office on Friday. Speaking to committee members and the media, Dhami said that post-independence, Uttarakhand will be the first state in the country to implement the UCC, aiming to bring parity among communities in accordance with the Constitution of India.

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“The UCC rulebook is divided into four main parts. It outlines provisions for implementing the UCC, specifically regarding the registration of marriage and divorce, live-in relationships, registration of births and deaths, and inheritance rights over parents’ properties. The state cabinet will soon decide on this and set a date for the effective implementation of the Act. After Independence, Uttarakhand will be the first state in the country to implement the UCC,” Dhami said.

The Chief Minister informed that officers and employees will receive formal training on the provisions of the UCC and its modes of implementation. He added, “A portal and a mobile app have also been created for the smooth implementation of the UCC, ensuring easy accessibility of its provisions to the public. The online availability of the UCC through the app will help people avail themselves of its benefits in their own ways.” Chief Minister Dhami stressed that everyone in Uttarakhand should have the right to equality in justice, irrespective of the community or class to which they belong. “The bill is designed with one of the core ideas being to empower and provide social security to the women of Uttarakhand, transcending communities and religious beliefs.

After the formation of his second consecutive government in 2022, Pushkar Singh Dhami decided in his first cabinet meeting to constitute an expert panel to draft the UCC for Uttarakhand. The committee, led by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, submitted its draft after nearly two years. The bill was passed by the state legislature on 7 February 2024. Finally, the Uniform Civil Code Uttarakhand Bill 2024 became an Act after receiving approval from the President of India on 12 March 2024.