Yog Raj Sharma
The North News
Shimla, March 20
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday said the state’s economy remains strong, with per capita income rising to ₹2.83 lakh, even as he hit back at the opposition over allegations related to the government’s handling of the drug menace.
Presenting the Economic Survey 2025-26 in the Assembly, Sukhu said Himachal Pradesh’s gross state domestic product (GSDP) for the financial year 2025-26 is estimated at around ₹2.54 lakh crore, reflecting a growth of 10.1% over the previous year.
At constant prices, the growth rate is projected at 8.3%, which the chief minister said reflects the state’s resilient economic activity despite global uncertainty and climate-related challenges.
He described the figures as the result of what he called a “system change” brought in by the present government.
Sukhu also said that if the RDG had not been discontinued, Himachal Pradesh could have witnessed even faster development.
Responding to criticism from the opposition, the chief minister said his government has been consistently running a campaign against “chitta” and drug trafficking in the state.
He accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of doing little to tackle the drug problem when it was in power, saying the Congress government had introduced a stronger legal framework after coming to office.
“The BJP’s role has been reduced to opposing everything,” Sukhu said, adding that the previous Jai Ram Thakur-led government had failed to take any concrete steps against narcotics.
He said the present government had acted against police personnel found to be involved in drug trafficking and insisted that the police department was treating the issue with seriousness.
The remarks came amid an intensifying political confrontation in the Assembly, where the opposition has accused the government of failing to control the spread of synthetic drugs across the state.
