Dehradun, Feb 22 (PTI) The Uttarakhand Assembly was adjourned sine die on Saturday after a five-day session which began on February 18.

The session saw the passage of a budget of over Rs 1 lakh crore for 2025-26 with an emphasis on innovation, agriculture, connectivity and infrastructure development.

"Our budget this time has crossed Rs 1 lakh crore. It is 13 per cent more than the last budget and 24 times more than Uttarakhand's first budget. It is not just an annual document for us but a blueprint of the state's future," Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said while moving the budget for the consideration and passage of the House.

It also saw the passage of an amendment bill for land reforms which imposes restrictions on land purchase in the whole of Uttarakhand except the plain districts of Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar where most of the industrialised areas of the state are concentrated.

The amendment bill to Uttar Pradesh Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act 1950 creates a stricter set of land laws putting limits on buying land in the hill state where the size of agricultural land is already shrinking.

"It will lay the foundation of land reforms in the state and rein in land mafia. It will also lead to better land management. It is in keeping with the sentiments of the people of the state and will protect their rights," Dhami said.

It would also help differentiate between land mafia and genuine investors and would protect the latter's interests. The need for it was being felt as land purchase rules were being violated on a large scale in the state, Dhami said. PTI ALM ALM KSS KSS

Land purchase restrictions across hill districts, exempting certain plains, to curb illicit acquisitions and protect genuine investors. The legislature approved a budget prioritising innovation, agriculture, connectivity and infrastructure, and enacted an amendment to the Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act that imposes restrictions on land purchase across hill districts while exempting the plain districts of Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar, with the stated aims of curbing land mafia activity, protecting genuine investors and improving land management.