CM Sukhu to present budget for 2026-27on March 20

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, who is also the Finance Minister, will present the budget for the financial year 2026-27 in the Vidhan Sabha on March 20.

Industries and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan today confirmed that the second phase of the budget session will resume on March 18, for which the Vidhan Sabha will issue the notification. The first phase of the budget session had commenced with the Governor’s address on February 16 for three days after which it was adjourned by Speaker Kuldeep Pathania.

“The debate on the Motion of Thanks to the Governor’s address will be held on March 18 and 19 and the same day, the Chief Minister will give the reply,” said Chauhan. He said that the Assembly will debate on the budget to be presented by CM Sukhu on March 20 for three days from March 23 to 25.

Following this, the Vidhan Sabha will take up the cut motions of various departments on March 27, 28 and the budget will be passed after this on the same day.

The Finance Department is in the process of preparing the budget. This will be the fourth budget to be presented by Chief Minister Sukhu. However, with the 16^th Finance Commission recommending discontinuation of the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG), Himachal is faced with severe economic distress as the hill state will suffer a loss of almost Rs 10,000 crore annually.

Sukhu had met Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman in New Delhi yesterday to seek a special Central assistance for the state. He has urged the Centre not to equate Himachal with 16 other states whose RDG also is being scrapped in view of the state having limited avenues for resource mobilisation and the difficult topography. Any help from the Centre is still awaited before the presentation of the budget on March 20.