Shimla: Leader of the Opposition and former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur alleged that several announcements made in the state budgets over the past three years have remained confined to paper and demanded an explanation from the Sukhu government.
Thakur said the Congress government had come to power promising a “system change,” but even the announcements made in its first budget have not been implemented. He claimed that many of the schemes announced during budget sessions of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly have not moved beyond official files and have failed to show any visible progress on the ground.
He alleged that the government continues to repeat several announcements every year without ensuring their implementation. “There is a clear difference between statements made during election rallies and announcements made inside the Legislative Assembly. Once a scheme is announced in the budget and provisions are made, it becomes the responsibility of the government to implement it,” Thakur said.
The BJP leader claimed that the Congress government had misled women and students through its guarantees and budget announcements. He pointed out that the government had announced a subsidy of ₹25,000 for electric scooters for 20,000 meritorious female students in its first budget, but the scheme has not progressed and is no longer being discussed.
Thakur also questioned the government’s policies related to electric mobility. He said that while the government had earlier announced the development of six green corridors for electric vehicles, it has now imposed an environmental cess of ₹6 per unit on EV charging.
He further alleged that the announcement to establish model health institutions in every assembly constituency has not been implemented. Similarly, proposals to install PET scan facilities in Chamba, Nahan and Hamirpur remain pending and are yet to be translated into action.
Raising concerns about other sectors, Thakur said announcements related to farmers, horticulturists, athletes, women and residents of tribal regions have also failed to move beyond paperwork. He added that promises regarding employment generation and self-reliance for youth have also not materialised.
Highlighting the financial aspect, Thakur said the Sukhu government presented budgets of ₹63,712 crore in its first year, ₹75,496 crore in its second year and ₹58,343 crore in its third year, excluding supplementary budgets. According to him, the government has presented budgets worth around ₹2.2 lakh crore in three years and also taken loans exceeding ₹45,000 crore during the same period.
“If such large budgets have been presented and heavy borrowing has been done, the government must explain why the schemes announced in the budget sessions have not even been launched,” Thakur said.
He added that the people of the state expect the Chief Minister to clarify the status of the announcements made in the previous three budgets before presenting the next budget in the Assembly.
