Himachal wants high level committee to assess financial impact; Punjab wants Special Category Status

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Thursday (June 11, 2026) urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to set up a high-level committee to evaluate the financial impact on the hill State and accord Special Category Status (SCS) to the western border State respectively.

They were speaking at the 11th Governing Council meeting of NITI Aayog held under the theme ‘Inclusive human development for Viksit Bharat’, chaired by the Prime Minister in New Delhi.

Key concerns

Mr. Sukhu said the financial impact arose from several key concerns, including the discontinuation of the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG, i.e. statutory financial transfers provided by the Centre to specific States to bridge the gap between their assessed revenue and expenditure), losses caused by natural disasters, inadequate compensation from hydropower projects in terms of free power and revenue shortfalls resulting from the Goods and Services Tax framework.

He said Himachal is contributing towards the growth of the country despite these limitations and sought a detailed report by a high-level committee to the Government of India so that the State may get its “due share”.

‘Major blow’

“The discontinuation of RDG posed a major blow to the economy of the State and the ₹25,000 crore provided to the State is insufficient to compensate the loss. It should be increased to ₹50,000 crore so that development activities can be carried out in a smooth manner,” he said.

“Himachal Pradesh provides ₹90,000 crore ecological services to the country as per a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Forest Management. However, the State is not being compensated accordingly against its contribution towards preserving ecology. The State was being deprived of fair amount of free power on 13,000 MW power being produced in the State. The State has still not received arrears amounting to ₹7,000 crore from the Bhakra Beas Management Board. It bore the brunt of natural disasters and still awaits the announced ₹1,500 crore special assistance,” Mr. Sukhu added.

90:10 funding: Mann

Mr. Mann sought a special package for the revitalisation of border areas and demanded that Punjab be accorded SCS with 90:10 funding under all Centrally-sponsored schemes on the lines of hill States, north-eastern States and Jammu & Kashmir.

“Punjab is a frontline State sharing a 553-km border with Pakistan. It faces a deep and multidimensional crisis that includes persistent cross-border terrorism, drone-based smuggling of heroin and weapons. This has resulted in a drug addiction epidemic among youth, organised crime and daily hardship for farmers cultivating land between the security fence and the International Border under Border Security Force escort,” he said.

“Although Punjab acts as a buffer for the country against repeated hostilities from our neighbour, support from the Government of India has been grossly inadequate for the State and its border areas,” Mr. Mann added.