Chandigarh: Close on the heels of Punjab having been rated as the second-most debt-ridden state in the country, the annual budget presented by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government Friday in the state Assembly has drawn flak.
Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Punjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa junked the Rs 2.36 lakh crore budget for the financial year 2025-26 terming it as a plethora of lies and deceitfulness.
In the upcoming Financial Year (2025-26) the AAP government will raise a loan of Rs 49,900 crore. Consequently, the state’s outstanding debt will be Rs 3.96 lakh crore by the end of next FY. When the AAP got hold of power in March 2022, the outstanding debt in Punjab was Rs 2.73 lakh crore.
Is this what Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema was boasting about? Asked Bajwa while terming it as “an extremely disappointing budget as it has disregarded all the sections of the state including women, farmers, service class, students, and the business community.”
“The agriculture sector is the most crucial sector of Punjab. The allocation of Rs 14,524 crore for the agriculture sector is nothing but a cruel joke with the farmers of Punjab. MSP procurement for non-paddy crops covers just 2 percent of farmers. To diversify 10 lakh hectares it needs Rs 28,000 crore per year, not Rs 1,200 crore allocated,” Bajwa added.
The LoP said that the CM Bhagwant Singh Mann government has failed to fulfill its key pre-poll promises. Much publicized poll promise of Rs 1100 monthly allowance for women has not been announced this year either. The government failed to curb the drug menace in the state.
Despite lofty claims, the AAP government remained inefficient in making an effective enhancement in the budget for the education and health sectors. Subsequently, the people belonging to the weaker section will remain deprived of quality education and health services. The industrial sector has been completely ignored. There is only a negligible allocation for revival of the industry in Punjab. The promise to provide Rs 250 crore for industry revival proved to be hollow.
Bajwa further said “The AAP government claims that the revenue deficit trimmed to 2.51 percent. But in reality, deficit reduction was achieved by delaying Rs 3968 crore SC scholarship payments and Rs 18,424 lakh pensions – robbing vulnerable groups.”
