Himachal Vidhan Sabha approves salary hike for CM, ministers, speaker, deputy speaker and MLAs

With indesign box attached in CCI

Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha on Friday passed three bills approving a nearly 24% increase in salaries and allowances for the chief minister, ministers, speaker, deputy speaker, and MLAs. The hike, to be adjusted every five years based on the cost inflation index, is expected to add about ₹24 crore in recurring expenditure to the state exchequer.

Once approved by the governor, the chief minister's monthly salary will increase from ₹95,000 to ₹1.15 lakh, while cabinet ministers will see a rise from ₹80,000 to ₹95,000. The salaries of ministers of state and deputy ministers will increase to ₹93,000 and ₹80,000, respectively. MLAs will receive ₹70,000 a month, up from ₹55,000. The speaker and deputy speaker will also see hikes to ₹95,000 and ₹92,000, respectively.

Additionally, the bills propose increases in sumptuary, compensatory, constituency, and office allowances for legislators. An MLA will now receive ₹1.2 lakh as a constituency allowance and ₹90,000 as an office allowance. The pension for first-time MLAs will rise from ₹36,000 to ₹50,000 a month, also subject to revision every five years. Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu defended the hikes, citing the rising cost of living. "We have increased our salaries by about ₹25,000 to ₹30,000 a month, about 24-to-26%," he said. However, he noted that MLAs would no longer receive ₹20,000 a month for telephone bills or subsidies on electricity and water. The last salary revision was in 2016.

Uhl generates ₹200 cr annually

The CM announced that power generation had commenced at the 100-megawatt (MW) Uhl hydropower project, phase-III, which had produced 100 MW of electricity on March 26. The project is expected to generate 392 million units annually, providing the govt with an estimated ₹200 crore in annual revenue.

Launched in 2003, the project took 22 years to complete, with significant progress made under the current Congress govt. To expedite its completion, the state provided a 100% no-default guarantee for a ₹185 crore loan. The construction was completed in Dec 2024, followed by the filling of an 11-km water conductor system and the connection of three turbines to the power grid.

The passage of these Bills marks a significant shift in governance, balancing increased salaries for public representatives with reforms in law enforcement, environmental policy, and infrastructure development. The success of these initiatives now hinges on effective implementation and public reception.

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