"Serious situation": BJP's Jairam Thakur slams Congress-led Himachal govt over financial crisis

Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India] February 9 (ANI): Himachal Pradesh Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Jairam Thakur criticised the Congress-led state government over the worsening economic crisis.
He said urgent measures are needed and called the situation "serious."
Speaking to ANI on Sunday, Thakur said, "The Congress government is running in Himachal Pradesh under his (Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu) leadership. The responsibility lies with the government to find a way to pull Himachal Pradesh out of this economic crisis... This is a serious situation."
"All subsidies will have to be stopped, and the scope of social security pensions will also have to be reduced or discontinued... Do you (the state government) want to do everything solely with the help of the central government?" he said.
A day earlier, mounting a strong all-party appeal against the scrapping of the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG), the Himachal Pradesh government said it would challenge the decision both politically and legally, warning that the move threatens the state's financial backbone and can be resolved only through political intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Following a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Sukhu, who also holds the Finance portfolio, the state government made a detailed presentation on Himachal Pradesh's financial position before MLAs, senior officers and the media.
The opposition BJP, however, skipped the presentation, a move the government described as "unfortunate" amid a deepening fiscal crisis.
Addressing the gathering, CM Sukhu said the 16th Finance Commission's decision not to recommend RDG has pushed the hill state into a serious financial emergency.
"Himachal Pradesh is a geographically difficult hill state. A large administrative and service structure is unavoidable to deliver basic facilities to people living in remote and sparsely populated areas," he said.
Despite having a population of only about 70 lakh, the Chief Minister said the state faces heavy expenditure on salaries, pensions and interest payments, leading to a structural revenue deficit. "This cannot be addressed through routine fiscal measures," he said. (ANI)