Budget session at Gairsain from March 9-13

Dehradun: The Uttarakhand govt on Tuesday approved a five-day budget session at Gairsain, beginning March 9 with the address of Governor Gurmit Singh.Earlier, chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had confirmed that the session would be held in Gairsain instead of Dehradun. So far, MLAs have submitted over 500 questions in the assembly and with nearly three weeks to go, the number is expected to rise.The opposition Congress criticised the short duration of the session. Leader of Opposition Yashpal Arya recently wrote to Dhami demanding a 21-day session at Gairsain.State Congress chief spokesperson Garima Dasauni said, "It is unclear why the session is being held in such haste. MLAs represent the people and want adequate time to raise issues, but they are being given little opportunity. There is virtually no time for detailed discussion on the budget."