The loans raised in the final quarter of 2022–2023 were also included in the loan.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) stated in its report on Finance Accounts for 2022–23 that the Himachal Pradesh government increased loans totaling Rs 13,055 crore during 2022–23, increasing the debt burden from Rs 73,534 crore in 2021–22 to Rs 86,589 crore in 2022–23. The loans obtained during the final quarter of 2022–2023 were also included in the loan.
According to a report submitted to the Vidhan Sabha by Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, over half of the Rs 50,539 crore spent in the year went towards salaries and pensions. The report also stated that after the Sixth Pay Commission was implemented, which Himachal Pradesh followed, expenditures on these categories increased. The income shortfall was slightly less in 2022–2023 at Rs 6,335 crore compared to Rs 7,962 crore in 2021–2022. Following the pay scale modification, salary expenditures, which were Rs 11,641 crore in 2021–2022, rose to Rs 15,669 crore in the most recent fiscal year. Likewise, in 2022–2023 the cost of pension payments went up from Rs 6,088 crore to Rs 9,283 crore.
The government failed to file the utilisation certificates in 2021–22 and 2022–23, even though it spent Rs 4,242 crore; additionally, the study noted that subsidies grew from Rs 1,240 crore to Rs 1,973 crore. After five days of sittings, including a private member’s day, the Himachal Vidhan Sabha adjourned sine die on Saturday. 33 hours of proceedings were completed, and 132% of the work was completed, according to Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania. 260 starred and 119 unstarred questions were answered throughout the session, according to him, out of the 348 starred and 123 unstarred questions that were asked.
