Uttarakhand BJP leader, head of rural health advisory board, who tested Covid-19 positive dies

Gyan Singh Negi, who headed the Rajya Gramin Swasthya Salahkar Parishad, had tested Covid-19 positive earlier

Updated on: Sep 8, 2020, 12:20:28 IST

Hindustan Times, Dehradun | By Neeraj Santoshi

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Gyan Singh Negi, a senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader in Uttarakhand, who was suffering from Covid-19 died on Tuesday morning, Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said.

“I am deeply saddened to learn about the death of senior leader of BJP Uttarakhand, Gyan Singh Negi who held the post of Minister of State with the state government. May God give strength to the bereaved family to bear this loss and the departed soul rest in peace,” Rawat tweeted

Gyan Singh Negi headed Rajya Gramin Swasthya Salahkar Parishad, the government’s rural health advisory body and held the rank of a minister of state.

Devendra Bhasin, state spokesperson for BJP said Negi had been associated with the party from a young age.

“Negi ji was a very senior leader of our party and had been associated with different social causes since a young age. He was associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in the initial years and held different posts at district level before formally joining the party. He was given an MoS rank, respecting his seniority and his contribution to the party. It is a great loss for all of us,” said Bhasin.

Uttarakhand has reported over 25,000 Covid-19 cases and 348 Covid-related deaths.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More