Punjab received over ₹8k crore in capital aid in 5 yrs: Centre

SASCI, a Union government programme, provides states with 50-year, interest-free loans for capital expenditure aimed at creating long-term public assets and infrastructure

Punjab has received ₹8,379 crore till July 2026 in financial assistance under the Centre’s Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure/Investment (SASCI) over the past five years, but the Union government has ruled out any special financial assistance package or debt-relief mechanism for the state, highlighting the distinction between capital funding and addressing Punjab’s broader fiscal burden.

In a reply in Lok Sabha, the Union govt rules out any special assistance or debt-relief package. (HT File)

SASCI, a Union government programme, provides states with 50-year, interest-free loans for capital expenditure aimed at creating long-term public assets and infrastructure. In a written reply to a Lok Sabha question raised by Patiala MP Dharamvira Gandhi during the recent session, Union minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary said there was no proposal under consideration to provide Punjab with any special financial assistance package or debt-relief mechanism.

The Centre said the scheme would continue in the current financial year with an enhanced overall allocation of ₹2 lakh crore.

Earlier data obtained through an RTI application filed by Sangrur-based advocate Kamal Anand showed that Punjab had received ₹5,563.64 crore against ₹7,292.66 crore sanctioned under SASCI between 2020-21 and 2025-26 up to December 31, 2025, translating into a release rate of 76.3% at that cut-off.

450 projects across key sectors covered

The sanctioned assistance covers more than 450 capital projects across Punjab, spanning roads, irrigation, water and sanitation, education, healthcare, agriculture, tourism, urban infrastructure and sports.

The largest allocation, ₹2,355.08 crore, has been earmarked for roads, bridges and highways, covering more than 220 projects, including major district and state road corridors, rural link-road modernisation and connectivity works. Another ₹1,278.56 crore has been allocated for canals, irrigation and drainage, including relining of the Sirhind Feeder, Kandi Canal extensions, branch canal networks and deep tubewells in Kandi areas.

Water supply, sewerage and liquid-waste projects account for ₹557.74 crore, including sewage treatment plants and sewer networks under the Swachh Bharat Mission and AMRUT 2.0. Education and skill development have received ₹470.56 crore for Schools of Eminence infrastructure, 19 new Industrial Training Institutes, ITI upgrades and Samagra Shiksha works.

The agriculture and mandi sector has been allocated ₹368.65 crore for modern mandi infrastructure, solar power systems and storage godowns, while ₹347.14 crore has been earmarked for healthcare infrastructure, including modernisation of 36 sub-divisional hospitals, mother and child wings, model district hospitals and effluent treatment and fire-safety systems at more than 100 community health centres.

Tourism, heritage and urban beautification projects account for ₹287.95 crore, including the Unity Mall in Amritsar, Heritage Street in SBS Nagar, Quila Mubarak restoration and the rejuvenation of the Kali Bein and Buddha Dariya. Sports and police/security projects account for ₹317.19 crore, including hockey astroturfs and border-area CCTV surveillance.

The sports push also includes ₹200 crore for 23 multi-block playground projects in rural areas to strengthen sports infrastructure for rural youth.

Anand has argued that Punjab should receive a larger share of central capital assistance, using the state’s approximately 2.3% population share as a benchmark. On that basis, he estimated a notional gap of about ₹4,728 crore against the ₹5,563.64 crore released up to December 31, 2025. However, this population-based comparison is an advocacy benchmark and does not constitute an official SASCI allocation formula.

The Centre also pointed to other avenues of financial support for Punjab, including finance commission-recommended grants, central sector schemes, centrally sponsored schemes and additional central assistance for externally aided projects.