Former Punjab Health Minister and senior Congress leader Balbir Singh Sidhu strongly condemned the Punjab Government’s recently presented budget, calling it a “black document” of Punjab’s economic destruction.In a press statement issued today, Sidhu said the budget is completely misleading, filled with populist announcements and far removed from the ground realities of Punjab.
He stated that the Aam Aadmi Party government has merely tried to deceive people through manipulation of figures. He further said that instead of outlining any concrete policy to reduce the massive debt burden running into lakhs of crores on Punjab, the government has effectively set the stage for the state’s debt to rise to ₹4.5 lakh crore by March 31 next year.
The Congress leader said that due to the faulty economic policies of Bhagwant Mann, along with tax evasion and corruption, the state’s revenue has stagnated severely. As a result, 91% of the state’s total income is being spent on salaries, pensions, and repayment of debt installments and interest.
He added that by next year the ratio of Punjab’s total debt to total income will reach 50% and may rise to 60% by 2031, which is a clear sign of economic collapse.Lashing out at the government, the former minister said that farmers and labourers, considered the backbone of Punjab, have been completely ignored in this budget.
No special package has been announced to stop farmer suicides caused by the agrarian crisis or to support affected families. He said that the government which once made tall claims of loan waivers is now running away from addressing farmers’ issues. He further added that despite making big claims, the government has failed to formulate even an agriculture policy for an agriculture-dominated state.
Sidhu further said that the budget is extremely disappointing for government employees and pensioners. The government that pretended to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) has not allocated any funds for it in the budget, leaving employees feeling cheated.
He added that the government’s silence on the five pending installments of Dearness Allowance (DA) also continues in the budget, which has created strong resentment among state employees who are already receiving 18% less DA than central government employees.
The Congress leader also alleged that the government has not allocated any special budget for the promotion and development of the Punjabi language, which is a clear injustice to the state’s mother tongue.He concluded by saying that this budget is merely a document prepared keeping the upcoming elections in mind and has no real connection with the development of the common people.