Nearly two months after the Congress government was formed in Himachal Pradesh, first-time Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu claimed in an interview that the present government is rapidly working towards “system change” which, He was derailed by the previous BJP in the last five years. Despite the financial crisis of the state, the government has started fulfilling its promises by restoring the old pension scheme. Mr. Sukhu says that a new ‘Open Industrial Policy’ will be implemented soon to bring rapid investment in the state, which will also help in generating employment opportunities. Excerpts:
What have been the achievements of the new Congress government headed by you in Himachal Pradesh so far and what are the immediate priorities?
After coming to power, we have started fulfilling our promises, have taken action against corruption and have started working towards changing the ‘bepatri’ system of the previous BJP government. We restored the old pension scheme for government employees even though it was difficult. The previous BJP government left us (the present government) with the obligation to pay dearness allowance of about ₹4,500 crore to employees, ₹5,500 crore (approx) to pensioners and about ₹1,000 crore to both. The state’s economic health is poor due to excessive spending by the previous government, resulting in a debt of around ₹75,000 crore. We want to bring this government within the reach of the common man as far as priorities are concerned. Soon after becoming the Chief Minister, I visited an orphanage, with the sole aim of giving a broad message that our government will take care of its people, even if they are not in a position to approach the government. We have constituted a fund ‘Sukh-Ashray Sahayata Kosh’ to finance the higher education of destitute children. Among other immediate priorities, we have set a target of making Himachal Pradesh a ‘Green Energy State’ by the end of the year 2025 by harnessing hydro, hydrogen and solar energy and switching to green products. The State Transport Department will very soon replace the existing vehicles with electric vehicles in a phased manner. All government vehicles will be replaced by electric vehicles within the next year and no diesel vehicles will be purchased by government departments.
You said that Himachal Pradesh is facing financial crisis, what is your plan to get the state out of debt crisis?
Of course, the financial condition of the state is not good, but I firmly believe that in the next four years, if we follow financial discipline and take hard decisions, then definitely the economic condition will improve. We are working and discussing all possibilities to increase revenue. Some tough decisions will have to be taken.
What is the road map of your government to provide jobs to unemployed youth? Do you intend to introduce new industrial/tourism policies?
We have promised to provide employment opportunities in government and other sectors and we have started working in this direction. Government is coming soon with ‘Open Industrial Policy’. Under this policy, if an industrialist wants to come to Himachal Pradesh to set up an industry, he will only have to deposit an ‘advance’ premium amount, and the state government will take care of granting all necessary permissions under section 118. Himachal Pradesh, Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972, or Water-Electricity Connection, etc. The industrialist doesn’t have to wait any longer, they can come with their detailed project report, show their project cost, and deposit 2%. Spend as advance premium with Govt and start working. Its objective is to bring rapid investment in the state. Also, Kangra district will be developed as ‘Tourism Capital’ of the state by developing infrastructure to promote tourism sector.
When you were in the opposition, you favored bringing in a law that would mandatorily ask all legislators to put their income and the source of their income in the public domain. Now that you are in the government, will you make such a law soon?
We have zero tolerance towards corruption. Definitely we will bring the law. I call this law ‘The Transparency Act’. The law envisages that any elected representative, be it Chief Minister, Minister or MLA, should compulsorily be asked to give details of his income and more importantly, the source of that income and the amount to be spent on it. Must be placed in the public domain. This will help in bringing transparency. I believe that the image of leaders coming in public life should be clean and for this it is necessary that there should be complete transparency in their conduct.
You have held the previous BJP government responsible for derailing the system of the state. What do you mean by this and how do you plan to improve the system?
The previous BJP government failed to deliver as they lacked efficient governance. The previous government had negligible control over the administration, which led to stalled development in the entire state, derailing the entire system. We have started working towards rectifying the derailed system. We are here to change the system regime change) For the benefit of the public by ensuring good governance. We are taking decisive action. Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission had become the center of corruption in BJP rule, we suspended the functioning of the commission, this was the first step against corruption. Now the selection will be ensured purely on the basis of merit in a fair and transparent manner.
Drug abuse is a serious problem in Himachal Pradesh. What is your blueprint for dealing with the problem?
There will be no leniency in dealing with the drug mafia. We will soon bring the necessary changes in the law to add a provision to confiscate the properties of any person found involved in drug trade. I have already given instructions to deal strictly with drug mafia in the inter-state border districts, besides conducting special raids along the state border with Punjab and other states.