The Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Bipin Rawat along with Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and Garhwal MP and former Chief Minister Major General (retd) Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri inaugurated the Garhwal Rifles war memorial hostel for boys and girls at Danda Lakhaund area of Dehradun on Sunday.
The hostel has State of the art boarding and lodging facilities for 125 boys and 125 girls from classes V to XII, along with bus facility for conveyance to schools, round the clock security, in house medical facilities including doctor on call, sports and recreational facilities, fully stocked library, tuition facilities, audio visual room and computer lab among other facilities.
Speaking on the occasion the Army chief said that the inauguration of the Garhwal Rifles war memorial hostel at the start of Navratri was an auspicious development. This facility will prove beneficial for the children of army personnel. Thanking the Uttarakhand Government and other institutions for their support in construction of the hostel, General Rawat said that good facillities will be provided to the students at this hostel which will enable them to study well for employment in the armed forces and other organisations.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said that, the hostel will enable children of army personnel from remote rural areas to avail of good facilities for education. If the army agrees, the Government has a plan for constructing a hostel for the dependents of servicemen in Haldwani too. He claimed that despite limited resources, the state government is ready to provide all possible assistance to soldiers and families of servicemen. To improve the condition of the Sainik School at Ghodakhal, the grant provided to the school has been increased from Rsthree crore to Rsfive crore.
Addressing the gathering, the Garhwal MP and former CM, Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri said that opening of the war memorial hostel was an appreciable effort for the welfare of the dependents of servicemen.
The Vice Chief of Army Staff, lieutenant general Sarath Chand informed the gathering that State Government had provided 4.18 acre land and Rs2.50 crore financial assistance for the hostel. Various organisations also contributed towards the construction of this facility, he added.