Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday chaired a review meeting on the power sector and urban missions along with Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu at Himachal Bhavan in Chandigarh.   Khattar, who holds the portfolios of Housing and Urban Affairs and Power, told reporters that after the portfolio allocation, he reviewed projects of his departments to understand issues of various states and discuss what new projects can be brought in future. "Chaired an important review meeting of the Power sector & Urban Missions/Schemes along with Honble Chief Minister, Himachal Pradesh Shri SukhuSukhvinder at Himachal Bhawan. Govt. of India is committed to transform the Power & Urban infrastructure and ensure a bright & sustainable future for the people of Himachal Pradesh," Khattar posted on X.   Khattar said discussions were also held on ongoing projects, including power, smart city, and urban development projects. Khattar, who is MP from Karnal, while referring to urban development projects, said various schemes, including Prime Minister SVANidhi scheme, were also discussed and feedback was taken about the utilisation of grants issued/allocated by the Centre. In the meeting, Chief Minister Sukhu called on the Central Government to adopt distinct norms for hilly States like Himachal Pradesh for sanctioning projects under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transport (AMRUT) Scheme, keeping in view the difficult terrain and topography.  A statement issued said that projects under AMRUT were sanctioned on the basis of population and the current population based criteria was unsuitable for Himachal Pradesh and needed to be relaxed to take maximum benefit under the Scheme.    Sukhu said that the recommendations of 15th Finance Commission should also be reviewed periodically as the cost of projects escalated overtime.  He said that Himachal Pradesh was one of the best performing states under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) and urged for funds to be released for PMAY-2 once the funds under PMAY-1 were fully utilized. The Chief Minister urged the Central Government to amend the tender policy system, reducing the period from 60 days to 10 days to accelerate the pace of development works. He said that system monitoring was an important concept and focus should be laid on it. He urged the Ministry of Power to allow one MW capacity solar systems with battery backups for border areas like Spiti to mitigate the hardships caused by snow and adverse weather.  He said that Rs. 362 crore has been earmarked to ensure uninterrupted power supply in these areas. It was informed in the meeting that clean cities of Himachal Pradesh may be declared Safai Mitra Surakshit Shehar, which would attract additional funding from the central government to enhance cleanliness efforts. Khattar said that a proposal of developing a new township at Jathia Devi near Shimla has been  received and was under process. He said that solid waste management plants may be set up in Municipal Corporations because big projects were not feasible in a small state like Himachal Pradesh.  He said that the concept of Sanjha Bazar should be explored in Himachal Pradesh so that Self Help Groups could sell their products at one place to earn their livelihood. The Union Minister suggested to the state to increase power production and the state should ensure maximum utilization of running water to harness the hydropower. Urban Development Minister Vikramaditya Singh and senior officials were present in the meeting. 

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