In 1969, the Planning Commission started giving special treatment to three States, namely Assam, Nagaland and Jammu & Kashmir. It was felt that requirements of these three States should first be met out of the total pool of central assistance.
Later on, special status was granted to eight more States which include Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim, Tripura and Uttarakhand. These states were accorded special status in the Fifth Plan. Presently, 11 States enjoy the Special Category Status.
The Special Category status that the previous UPA government had promised to Andhra Pradesh on the grounds of loss of revenue ....
