Himachal Assembly passes State Universities Amendment Bill

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Amendments tighten government oversight of university finances and recruitment as CM Sukhu targets previous BJP regime over debt, lottery and cannabis cultivation issues.

Shimla , September 2

The Himachal Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday passed the Himachal Pradesh State Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2026, introducing amendments to laws governing six state universities.

The amendments include provisions on financial matters, appointments, creation of posts, promotions, and salaries and allowances for university employees.

After the Bill was passed, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said government oversight of financial decisions in universities would increase. He said the Finance Department would play an important role in the Finance Committee, while matters related to recruitment, creation of posts, promotions and salaries and allowances would first be examined by the committee.

Sukhu said the amendments would ensure greater transparency in the recruitment process. Selection committees would be constituted for the recruitment of teachers and other employees, and the prescribed procedure would have to be followed.

Under the amended provisions, the Vice-Chancellor would be the university’s principal executive and academic officer and would oversee its functioning. In emergency situations, the Vice-Chancellor would have the power to take immediate decisions, but such decisions would subsequently require approval from the competent authority.

The Executive Council would be responsible for matters related to general administration and university property. The Finance Committee would examine the university budget, accounts and audit reports and advise the board.

In case of differences between the Finance Committee and the Executive Council, the matter would be referred to the Chancellor. The Chancellor’s decision, after consultation with the state government, would be final.

The amendments aim to strengthen financial discipline, transparency, and accountability in state universities.

Sukhu also targeted the previous BJP government over Himachal Pradesh’s financial condition, saying every government has to borrow, but the present government is also burdened with repaying loans taken by the previous BJP regime.

The Chief Minister said former Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur may have been a good chief minister, but he was a poor finance minister during his tenure.

According to Sukhu, Himachal Pradesh’s borrowing limit is around Rs 9,000 crore, while the state has to repay nearly Rs 11,000 crore every year. As a result, the state treasury has to spend around Rs 2,000 crore.

He alleged that the previous BJP government had “looted the state’s resources” and performed poorly in the education and health sectors. He said the present Congress government was continuously working to improve the state’s financial condition.

On the lottery issue, Sukhu termed the BJP’s opposition unnecessary and said the government had not forced anyone to purchase lottery tickets. He said only those who wished to buy lottery tickets would do so.

On cannabis cultivation, the Chief Minister accused the BJP of unnecessarily politicizing the issue. He pointed out that BJP legislators were also members of the Select Committee constituted to examine the matter and said such politics should be avoided.

Sukhu also reiterated the state government’s stand on Himachal Pradesh’s rights in the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB).

He said the state government had fought for its rights in the past and would continue to do so in the future.