Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Monday presented the annual Budget of Rs 58,514 crore for 2025-26 with focus on tourism, rural development and green energy.
Presenting his third Budget for, Sukhu, who also holds charge of the Finance Department, said the year 2025-26 is full of financial challenges as revenue deficit grant has been reduced and GST compensation has been stopped which will impact the state's economy.
The Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG) has been reduced from Rs 10,949 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 3,257 in 2025-26, while Himachal Pradesh incurred a loss of Rs 9,478 crore till 2023-24, despite Good and service Tax (GST) compensation given by the centre to the state, he said.
The government will focus on promoting religious and eco-tourism besides exploring lesser-known tourist destinations, he said, adding that tea estates would be developed as eco-tourism destinations. Operators were selected for seven eco-tourism sites in 2024 and 78 new eco-tourism sites would be allocated in the next phase and revenue of Rs 200 crore would be generated in the next five years.
Informing that the debt liability of the state has risen to Rs 1,04,729 crore out of which Rs 29,046 crore have been taken by the present government, he said 70 per cent of the loan taken in the past two years was spent on repayment of loan taken by the previous government and its interest component. Only Rs 8,693 crore was spent on developmental activities.
The Chief Minister also announced to give arrears of pensioners in the age bracket of 70-75 years in the first phase in May. He said that the previous BJP government had left liabilities of arrears of about Rs 10,000 crore of government employees.
Forest cover of Himachal Pradesh is the lung of North India, he said, and cited an estimate that the ecological services in form of soil, water, clean air and favorable climate amounts to Rs 90,000 crore annually and the state government is presenting its case for its invaluable contribution before the 16th finance commission.
He announced a hike of Rs 6 in the minimum support price of cow milk from Rs 45 to Rs 51 per litre and Buffalo milk from Rs 55 to Rs 61 per litre. Sukhu said that a target has been set to bring one lakh farmers under natural farming in 2025-26. So far about 1.58 lakh farmers have taken to natural farming.
