Maikhuri and the former Speaker of the Assembly, Govind Singh Kunjwal, strongly favour the city of Gairsain as the permanent capital of Uttarakhand.
Maikhuri was born in the village of Maikhura, of Karnaprayag tehsil, in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand.
[citation needed] He received his MA, LLB, and Ph.D. from Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University.
He served in the Sashastra Seema Bal for a short while but left job due to family reasons.
In 2002, he won the assembly election from Badrinath, defeating Kedar Singh Phonia.