Dehradun, Nov. 2 -- As the state gears up for its 25th foundation day celebrations, a report by Dehradun-based environmental and policy advocacy group SDC Foundation has raised concerns over the functioning of the state's legislative assembly. According to national data shared by the group, while the average duration of assembly sittings across 31 Indian states and Union territories in 2024 was 20 days, Uttarakhand's assembly met for only 10 days. In terms of total sitting hours too, the state logged merely 60 hours, compared to 125 hours in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh, placing Uttarakhand in the 22nd position among 28 states in 2024. SDC Foundation has released a factsheet titled "Comparative Performance of Uttarakhand Vidhan Sabha: Gaps and Challenges." The report, based entirely on annual assessments by PRS legislative research, analyses legislative performance over multiple years, highlighting widening gaps in accountability and democratic participation. "It is deeply concerning that both the number of sittings and total duration of Uttarakhand's Assembly sessions are among the lowest in the country," said Anoop Nautiyal, founder of SDC Foundation. "The soul of democracy lies in accountability, and when our elected representatives meet for barely a few days a year, it reflects a serious crisis of governance and democratic responsibility," he added. Speaker Ritu Khanduri Bhushan didn't respond to calls for a reaction. The PRS report reviewing assemblies of 31 states and UTs in 2024 showed Uttarakhand among the bottom performers in terms of sitting days. Odisha topped the list with 42 days of sittings, followed by Kerala (38), West Bengal (36), Karnataka (29), Rajasthan and Maharashtra (28 each), Himachal Pradesh (27), and Chhattisgarh (26). Delhi recorded 25 sitting days, Telangana and Goa 24 each, Gujarat and Bihar 22 each, while Jharkhand had 20 sittings. Andhra Pradesh met for 19 days, Tamil Nadu and Mizoram for 18 each, Assam 17, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh 16 each, Manipur 14, and Meghalaya and Haryana 13 each. Puducherry logged 12 days, and Tripura 11. In contrast, Uttarakhand, along with Punjab and Arunachal Pradesh, held only 10 sitting days during the entire year, jointly ranking 26th, 27th and 28th respectively, among the 31 states and UTs. Data further showed that Uttarakhand recorded the lowest number of assembly sittings in 2023 - just seven days and 44 hours of proceedings. Between 2017 and 2024, the state assembly met on an average of only 12 days per year, compared to 44 days in Kerala, 40 in Odisha and 34 in Karnataka. "This consistent underperformance keeps Uttarakhand among the least active assemblies in the country," Nautiyal added. He said that assemblies are not meant to serve mere ceremonial purposes but are vital for substantive legislative business - debating and passing laws and addressing urgent policy issues. "While the government claims there is no business to discuss, the truth is that there are hundreds of matters in the state that urgently require legislative attention," he said. Nautiyal also questioned the decision to hold the upcoming special session in Dehradun instead of Gairsain. "If the session were held in Gairsain, it would carry far greater impact and legitimacy," he said....