Special Category Status

• The concept for first introduced in 1969 to provide disadvantaged states with preferential in the form of centralassistance and tax breaks. The states of Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur,Meghalaya, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir have been given Special Category status.

The Major factor that determine the grant for special Status are:

• Hilly and difficult terrain
• Low population density/sizeable share of tribal population
• Strategic location along international Borders
• Economic and infrastructural backwardness
• Non-viable state finances.

Benefits of Special Category Status(SCS)

• Assistance to Centrally Sponsored Schemes for SCS States is given with 90% Central share and 10% State share. (Compared to 70 : 30 generally). Following the constitution of the NITI Aayog (after the dissolution of the Planning Commission) and the recommendations of the Fourteenth Finance Commission (FFC), Central plan assistance to SCS States has been subsumed in an increased devolution of the divisible pool to all States (from 32% in the 13th FC recommendations to 42%) and do not any longer appear in plan expenditure.

By: Vishal