Himachal Pradesh CM Seeks Special Financial Assistance to Address Revenue Deficit

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu met Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to seek a special financial package for the 2026-27 fiscal year, citing the adverse impact of discontinuing the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG). Sukhu highlighted that Himachal's RDG share is 12.7%, second highest after Nagaland, and argued that assessing all states uniformly overlooks the unique challenges of small hill states. He requested a committee to evaluate hill states' fiscal issues and noted the state's efforts to reduce expenditure and raise revenue despite GST-related losses.