Special session of Himachal Pradesh Assembly on 17th; proposal sent to Governor

February 5, 2026

A proposal to convene a special session of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly on February 17th has been sent to the Lok Bhawan (State Secretariat). This was sent through the Assembly Secretariat after a request from the government.

After obtaining the Chief Minister Sukhu’s consent, the proposal was sent to the Governor after approval was obtained from the state cabinet through circulation. The Governor is currently outside Shimla and is expected to give his approval upon his return.

This special session has been called after the central government discontinued the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG). The state government will discuss this issue with the opposition during the special session.

A resolution will be passed and sent to the central government, urging the restoration of the grant. The Himachal Pradesh government has suffered a major setback after the central budget, presented following the 16th Finance Commission’s report, completely discontinued the provision for the Revenue Deficit Grant. This will prevent the state from covering its deficit. The state’s revenue deficit has been increasing year after year.

Himachal Pradesh had been receiving the Revenue Deficit Grant based on the recommendations of the Finance Commission. Based on the recommendations of the Fifteenth Finance Commission, Himachal Pradesh received approximately ₹37,199 crore as a Revenue Deficit Grant.

This was allocated for the period between 2021 and 2026, spread over five years. In the year 2021-22, the grant received was ₹10,249 crore. In the financial year 2022-23, the grant was ₹9,377 crore. ₹8,058 crore was released in 2023-24, and ₹6,258 crore in 2024-25.