Twenty-two women from across Uttarakhand — achievers in sport, education, farming, and self-employment — walked off a stage in Kaladhungi on Sunday, 15 November 2026 with state honours, as Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami turned a felicitation ceremony into a platform for a string of local infrastructure promises and a sweeping articulation of his government's women-empowerment agenda.

Speaking at the Nari Shakti Samman Samaroh held at the Government Inter College ground in Kaladhungi, Dhami described the event as far more than a felicitation. 'Yah aayojan keval samman samaroh nahin, balki mahilaon ke sahas, sangharsh, parishram aur uplabdhiyon ko naman karne ka avsar hai' — 'This gathering is not merely a ceremony of honour, but an occasion to bow before the courage, struggle, hard work, and achievements of women,' he said.

Seven Announcements for Kaladhungi in a Single Address

Dhami used the occasion to announce a clutch of constituency-level projects. The list: installation of 200 electric poles across the Kaladhungi area; construction of a new road at Nawad Tok Sailani in village Gujarauda; construction of a mini stadium in Kaladhungi; widening of the Godapadav Bypass to Bajwalpur-Kishanpur road; and upgradation of Kaladhungi Hospital. The most tourism-linked announcement: registration of 70 additional gypsies at Corbett Tiger Reserve for the 2026-27 tourism season, explicitly aimed at generating employment opportunities for women ahead of the peak wildlife-safari season.

Lakhpati Didis, Self-Help Groups, and House of Himalayas

The Chief Minister laid out the state's layered approach to women's economic inclusion. He said more than 3.5 lakh women in Uttarakhand have crossed the 'Lakhpati Didi' threshold — earning over one lakh rupees annually through self-employment. The Uttarakhand State Rural Livelihood Mission has linked more than five lakh rural women across over 71,000 self-help groups, who are strengthening household finances through micro-enterprise.

Dhami also highlighted the state's 'House of Himalayas' brand, launched to give Uttarakhand's traditional products a national and international market. He said the brand has so far recorded sales exceeding Rs 6 crore and has connected approximately 5,500 women producers to commercial channels. Two additional state schemes — Mukhyamantri Sashakt Bahna Utsav Yojana, which provides market access for SHG products, and Mukhyamantri Ekal Mahila Swarozgar Yojana, targeting economic independence for single women — were cited as pillars of this framework.

From Central Legislation to State Reservations

Dhami anchored his speech in the broader national policy arc. He invoked the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam — the 2023 constitutional amendment that reserves one-third of seats in Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women — as a landmark step toward women's legislative leadership. He also cited central schemes including Ujjwala Yojana, Jan Dhan Yojana, PMAY, Ayushman Bharat, and Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, attributing the momentum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.

At the state level, Dhami pointed to 30 percent horizontal reservation for women in government services and 33 percent reservation in cooperative societies as structural guarantees embedded in Uttarakhand's policy framework.

A Chief Minister's Personal Testimony From the Hills

In a rare personal register, Dhami spoke of watching his own mother manage family responsibilities with scarce resources in a mountain setting. 'Pahad ki matrashakti ka manobaal Himalaya se bhi uncha aur majboot hai' — 'The morale of the motherly strength of the mountains stands taller and stronger than even the Himalayas,' he said. He quoted the Sanskrit verse 'Yatra naryastu pujyante ramante tatra devatah' — 'Where women are revered, there the gods reside' — to frame the event's moral core.

Among those present were MP Ajay Bhatt, Cabinet Minister Ram Singh Kaida, MLAs Banshidhar Bhagat, Sarita Arya and Dewan Singh Bisht, District Panchayat President Deepa Darmwal, Mayor Gajraj Bisht, and senior district officials including DM Lalit Mohan Rayal and SSP Manjunath T.C.

When gypsies start rolling through Corbett's forest trails next season with women at the wheel, the proof of these promises will be in the numbers — and Uttarakhand will be watching.