Supreme Court Orders Punjab and Haryana to Supply Himachal Pradesh 11,973 Million Units of Power Over 20 Years

The Supreme Court of India on Friday, November 6, 2026, directed Punjab and Haryana to supply about 11,973 million units of electricity to Himachal Pradesh over 20 years, LiveLaw reported. The order closes a decades long dispute over power from the Bhakra-Nangal and Beas hydroelectric projects.

The bench was Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana. The two states are to supply the arrears at about 598 million units per year during the lean season, from October to March, LiveLaw reported.

A suit from 1996

Himachal Pradesh filed the suit in 1996 under Article 131 of the Constitution. In its 2011 judgment, the Court declared Himachal entitled to 7.19 percent of the power attributable to the erstwhile composite State of Punjab.

The settlement also covers Himachal's share of the building cost of the projects. Its liability for its 7.19 percent share of the capital cost, assessed at Rs 420.77 crore, is to be adjusted against the energy arrears. Electricity is valued at Rs 3.85 per unit for that adjustment, which comes to about 1,093 million units, LiveLaw reported.

Paid in power, not cash

The Court accepted the Centre's proposal for cashless payment of the dues in energy terms. The arrears will move between the states as electricity over the 20 year period, in the lean season each year, rather than as a cash payment. The Economic Times live blog, reporting the same order, also recorded the Court's acceptance of the Centre's proposal.

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said the verdict was favourable to the state. He said it could open additional annual revenue of Rs 500 crore to Rs 1,000 crore for Himachal, The North News reported. That revenue range is the chief minister's own claim for what the order could bring, stated after the judgment.

The dispute ran for about three decades, from the 1996 suit through the 2011 judgment on the state's share to the 2026 order that fixes the arrears, the yearly supply rate and the way the capital cost is set against them.

For Himachal Pradesh, the order turns the share declared in 2011 into a fixed yearly supply of power. For Punjab and Haryana, the cost is spread across 20 lean seasons as electricity, rather than falling due as one cash payment.