Pride of Hills: Special Development Assistance for Hill States Scheme

News: The Centre allocated ₹4,900 crore to Arunachal Pradesh under the newly launched “Pride of Hills” initiative for 2026-27.

About Pride of Hills: Special Development Assistance for Hill States” Scheme

• “Pride of Hills: Special Development Assistance for Hill States” is a special initiative launched under the Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) framework for 2026-27 to address infrastructure and development gaps in hill and Himalayan states.
• Total Outlay: The scheme has a total outlay of ₹25,000 crore for nine hill and Himalayan states.
• Objective: The scheme aims to address structural and geographical disadvantages such as difficult terrain, weak connectivity, sparse population, high infrastructure costs, weaker fiscal indicators, and limited revenue-generation capacity.
• Beneficiary States: The nine beneficiary states are Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Uttarakhand, Tripura, Manipur, Meghalaya, Sikkim, and Mizoram.
• Permissible Utilization of Funds: The funds allocated under this scheme may be utilized by the States for the following purposes:
  • Repayment of Loans: Repayment of the principal amount of loans availed from the Government of India, banks, and other agencies, including loans for Externally Aided Projects (EAPs).
    • Funds released under this part will not impact the Gross Borrowing Ceiling of the State as determined under the Borrowing Guidelines for 2026–27.
  • State Share of Projects and Schemes: Meeting the State share of Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) and the State share of infrastructure projects of Central agencies such as Railways, highways, etc.
  • Counterpart funding for Externally Aided Projects (EAPs)

About Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) Framework Ministry Involved: The SASCI framework is implemented by the Department of Expenditure under the Ministry of Finance. Financial Support: The SASCI framework provides 50-year interest-free loans to States and Union Territories for capital investment projects. Objective: The framework aims to increase capital expenditure, improve productive capacity, and support economic growth through infrastructure development.