Himachal Pradesh Weekly Current Affairs:
15th Finance Commission increased grant for Himachal Pradesh:
- 15th Finance Commission has recommended an annual grant of Rs. 11,431 crore to Himachal Pradesh for the year 2020-21 with a 45 percent increase.
- In the commission report, Himachal will receive the highest revenue deficit grant in the country after Kerala which will be given Rs 15,323 crore.
- The projected annual growth rate of comparable GSDP for Himachal has been put at 10.3 per cent for 2020-21 as compared to 9.3 per cent for 2019-20.
- A grant of Rs 207 crore will also be made for urban local bodies.
- The commission has also restored the budgetary allocation to Zila Parishads and block development committees (BDC), which had been stopped by the previous Finance Commission.
- There has also been a hike of almost 40 percent in the disaster relief fund being provided by the Centre. Sources in the government said this would rake in an additional amount of almost Rs 450 crore to Himachal.
- In a major decision, which will go a long way in helping Himachal, is the enhancement in the weightage given to states for protecting forest and ecology. There are six major factors – area, population, income distance, demographic performance, and tax effort, besides forest and ecology. In the case of Himachal, this too has been enhanced from 7.5 percent to10 percent.
- Forest cover was used as a criterion in the devolution formula for the first time by the 14th commission on the grounds that while the forest cover maintained by states provide ecological benefits, it also imposes opportunity costs that need to be compensated.
CM launches Chhenna Kheer of H.P Milkfed:
- CM launched Chhenna Kheer produce by State Co-Operative Milk Producers Federation (Milkfed)
Read more: HP Current Affairs [Weekly and Monthly]
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