Punjab CM Seeks Special Category Status & Special Package for Border Areas from Centre
NEW DELHI: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Thursday strongly raised Punjab’s long-pending concerns before the NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog Governing Council, seeking a special package for the revitalisation of border areas and demanding that Punjab be accorded Special Category Status (SCS) with 90:10 funding under all Centrally Sponsored Schemes on the lines of hill states, North Eastern states and Jammu & Kashmir. Addressing the meeting, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann highlighted the extraordinary security, economic and social challenges faced by Punjab as a frontline border state and asserted that the state’s aspirations are fully aligned with the national goal of Viksit Bharat 2047.
*Punjab Deserves Special Support as a Frontline Border State*
Speaking on the unique challenges confronting Punjab, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “Punjab is a frontline state sharing a 553-kilometre border with Pakistan. The state faces a deep and multidimensional crisis that includes persistent cross-border terrorism, drone-based smuggling of heroin and weapons. This has resulted in a drug addiction epidemic among youth, organised crime and daily hardship for farmers cultivating land between the security fence and the international border under BSF escort.”
Highlighting the impact of natural disasters and security-related disruptions, the Chief Minister said, “Punjab also suffered the devastating impact of natural disasters such as the 2025 floods, which damaged more than 2,300 villages and caused losses estimated at ₹12,905 crore. The onslaught that residents of Punjab had to face in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor was visible for the entire country to see.”
CM Bhagwant Singh Mann said that densely populated villages and towns located close to the international border have been deprived of the economic growth witnessed by other parts of the country. He noted that decades of uncertainty and risk have resulted in negligible investment in border districts and, in many cases, led to a flight of capital and the closure or relocation of industries. “Although Punjab acts as a buffer for the country against repeated hostilities from our neighbour, support from the Government of India has been grossly inadequate for the state and its border areas,” he said.
Pointing to the disparity in development initiatives, the Chief Minister said, “Only 107 villages have been covered under the recently launched Vibrant Village-II Programme, whereas more than 2,000 villages and towns are located in very close proximity to the border.”
*Centre Must Accept Punjab’s Genuine and Long-Pending Demands*
CM Bhagwant Singh Mann said that Punjab has repeatedly urged the Union Government to take urgent measures to strengthen the international border and address the multiple challenges confronting the state. “To secure our international border with Pakistan, make it future-ready and address the multifaceted crisis facing Punjab, we have placed a series of urgent demands before the Central Government on multiple occasions. However, there has been little and unenthusiastic response from the Centre, which is unfortunate and undesirable,” he said.
The Chief Minister reiterated that the demands raised during the 10th meeting of the Governing Council in May 2025, as well as those presented during the current meeting, deserve serious consideration. “The genuine demands of the people of Punjab, raised by me during the 10th meeting of the Governing Council and reiterated today, may kindly be accepted,” he said.
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