List of governors of Uttarakhand
The Governor of Uttarakhand (Hindi: उत्तराखंड के राज्यपाल) is the nominal head of state of the Indian state of Uttarakhand and a representative of the president of India and is appointed by him for a term of five years, and holds office at the president's pleasure. The governor is de jure head of the state government; all its executive actions are taken in the governor's name. However, the governor must act on the advice of the popularly elected Uttarakhand Council of Ministers, headed by the chief minister of Uttarakhand, who thus hold de facto executive authority at the state-level. The Constitution of India also empowers the governor to act upon his or her own discretion, such as the ability to appoint or dismiss a ministry, recommend President's rule, or reserve bills for the president's assent. The governor of Uttarakhand has their official residences at the Raj Bhavans in Dehradun and Nainital.
| Governor of Uttarakhand | |
|---|---|
| Government of Uttarakhand | |
| Style | His Excellency (within Uttarakhand) The Honourable (outside Uttarakhand) |
| Status | Head of state |
| Residence | Raj Bhavan, Nainital (summer) Raj Bhavan, Dehradun (winter) |
| Nominator | Union Government of India |
| Appointer | President of India |
| Term length | Five years Renewable |
| Inaugural holder | Surjit Singh Barnala (2000–2003) |
| Formation | 9 November 2000 |
| Website | Governor of Uttarakhand |
Uttarakhand was created on 9 November 2000, when it was carved out from the Himalayan districts of Uttar Pradesh. The first governor of the state was Surjit Singh Barnala who served in office between 2000 and 2003. The current governor is Lieutenant General Gurmit Singh (Retd.) who has been in office since 14 September 2021. As of date, eight individuals have served as the governor of the state including two women - Margaret Alva and Baby Rani Maurya. No governor has till date completed full term in office. Sudarshan Agarwal holds the record of the longest-serving governor with 4 years, 293 days in office.
Qualifications edit
Article 157 and Article 158 of the Constitution of India specify eligibility requirements for the post of governor. They are as follows:
A governor must:
- be a citizen of India.
- be at least 35 years of age.
- not be a member of either house of the parliament or house of the state legislature.
- not hold any office of profit.
Powers and functions edit
The governor enjoys many different types of powers:
- Executive powers related to administration, appointments and removals,
- Legislative powers related to lawmaking and the state legislature, that is Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) & vidhan parishad, and
- Discretionary powers to be carried out according to the discretion of the governor.
Apart from enjoying various constitutional powers, the governor of Uttarakhand is the ex-officio Chancellor of the state universities of Uttarakhand. The universities include Kumaun University, Uttarakhand Sanskrit University, Doon University, Uttarakhand Open University, Uttarakhand Technical University, Sri Dev Suman Uttarakhand University, Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Uttarakhand Medical Education University, G. B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Uttarakhand Residential University, Soban Singh Jeena University.
List of governors edit
- Key
| No. | Portrait | Name (born – died) | Home state | Tenure in office | Immediate prior position held | Appointed by | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| From | To | Time in office | ||||||
| 1 | Surjit Singh Barnala (1925–2017) | Punjab | 9 November 2000 | 7 January 2003 | 2 years, 59 days | Union Cabinet Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers (until 1999) | K. R. Narayanan (President) | |
| 2 | Sudarshan Agarwal (1931–2019) | Punjab | 8 January 2003 | 28 October 2007 | 4 years, 293 days | Member, National Human Rights Commission | A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (President) | |
| 3 | Banwari Lal Joshi IPS (Retd.) (1936–2017) | Rajasthan | 29 October 2007 | 5 August 2009 | 1 year, 280 days | Governor of Meghalaya | Pratibha Patil (President) | |
| 4 | Margaret Alva (born 1942) | Karnataka | 6 August 2009 | 14 May 2012 | 2 years, 282 days | General Secretary, All India Congress Committee | ||
| 5 | Aziz Qureshi (1941–2024) | Madhya Pradesh | 15 May 2012 | 7 January 2015 | 2 years, 237 days | Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha (until 1989) | ||
| 6 | Krishan Kant Paul IPS (Retd.) (born 1948) | Chandigarh | 8 January 2015 | 21 August 2018 | 3 years, 225 days | Governor of Meghalaya | Pranab Mukherjee (President) | |
| 7 | Baby Rani Maurya (born 1956) | Uttar Pradesh | 26 August 2018 | 14 September 2021[§] | 3 years, 19 days | Member, Uttar Pradesh State Commission for Protection of Child Rights | Ram Nath Kovind (President) | |
| 8 | Lieutenant General (Retd.) Gurmit Singh PVSM UYSM AVSM VSM (born 1956) | Punjab | 15 September 2021 | Incumbent | 2 years, 248 days | Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Information Systems and Training) (until 2016) | ||
Timeline edit
See also edit
- Government of Uttarakhand
- Chief Minister of Uttarakhand
- Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly
- Speaker of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly
- Leader of the Opposition in the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly
- Cabinet of Uttarakhand
- Chief Justice of Uttarakhand
- List of current Indian governors
- List of presidents of India
References edit
External links edit
- India States