Bahuguna wants UP to clear decade-old dues

Lucknow, April 3 (IANS) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna will Wednesday reach Uttar Pradesh, his home state, on a two-day visit during which he will call on Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and discuss pending issues between the two states.

Bahuguna will first go to Allahabad, his home town and work place for years and partake in a felicitation programme and interact with old friends, a close aide told IANS.

Accompanied by his sister, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi and wife Sudha, Bahuguna will also spend a day in Lucknow where he will call on Akhilesh Yadav.

The issues to be discussed between the two include "resource distribution, property and assets division", a senior official said.

The two neighbouring states have been daggers drawn ever since the hill state was created in 2000.

Uttarakhand has been complaining of "step brotherly treatment" by Uttar Pradesh and has petitioned the union government many a times in the past.

The areas of contention include the 25 percent share of the power generated from Tehri which is still given to Uttar Pradesh, Rs.1,000 crore asset distribution and pending dues and irrigation offices in Hardiwar which are still in possession of the UP government.

Close aides of the Uttarakhand chief minister are hopeful that the issues will be resolved this time as the Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav has a personal equation with Vijay Bahuguna, emanating from the former's close relationship with the late Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna, father of Vijay Bahuguna.