In recent months, Punjab has witnessed a curious phenomenon. Government officials, accompanied by media entourages, have inaugurated basic facilities like school bathrooms and conducted minor repair works with considerable fanfare. These events, complete with ribbon-cutting ceremonies and congratulatory speeches, raise serious questions about priorities in a state grappling with existential challenges.
The current administration has mastered the art of turning mundane governmental responsibilities into photo opportunities. School renovations that should be routine maintenance are being showcased as transformative achievements. Basic infrastructure that citizens should expect as fundamental rights is being presented as revolutionary progress. This public relations blitz might generate positive headlines in the short term, but it diverts attention and resources from the deeper structural issues plaguing Punjab.
These elaborate functions organized to celebrate minimal achievements represent more than just political theater—they constitute a significant drain on the state’s already strained resources. The funds allocated for these ceremonies, including transportation, staging, security arrangements, and media management, could be better utilized for substantive development work. In a state where financial prudence should be the guiding principle, such expenditure appears increasingly indefensible.
While new projects are being announced across the state with remarkable regularity, a fundamental question remains unanswered: where will the money come from? Punjab’s financial health continues to deteriorate at an alarming rate, with debt figures painting a grim picture of fiscal mismanagement.
The statistics tell a devastating story:
2019-20: Debt of ₹2,18,327 crore with interest payments of ₹17,567 crore
2020-21: Debt of ₹2,58,032 crore with interest payments of ₹18,153 crore
2021-22: Debt of ₹2,81,773 crore with interest payments of ₹19,064 crore
2022-23: Debt of ₹3,14,221 crore with interest payments of ₹19,905 crore
2023-24: Debt of ₹3,82,935 crore with interest payments of ₹22,552 crore
2024-25: Debt of ₹4,17,136 crore with interest payments of ₹23,954 crore
Under the current Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, Punjab’s debt burden has increased by a staggering ₹1,02,915 crore. This is not merely a statistical anomaly but represents a fundamental failure of fiscal management that threatens the state’s future. The rapid acceleration of debt accumulation suggests that Punjab is caught in a dangerous debt spiral, where new borrowings are increasingly being used to service existing debt rather than fund productive investments.
The interest burden alone now constitutes a significant portion of the state’s budget, with payments jumping from ₹17,567 crore in 2019-20 to ₹23,954 crore in 2024-25. This represents an increase of over 36% in just five years. Every new rupee borrowed today becomes a heavier burden tomorrow, effectively mortgaging the future of coming generations of Punjabis.
Perhaps even more disturbing than the financial mismanagement is the government’s conspicuous silence on recruitment irregularities that have emerged across multiple departments. Various examinations for government posts—ranging from police to clerical services—have been marred by irregularities that suggest systemic manipulation rather than isolated incidents.
A troubling pattern has emerged where candidates from neighboring states, particularly Haryana, appear to be disproportionately successful in Punjab’s recruitment processes. More specifically, an unusual concentration of selected candidates comes from the Ghaggar belt—a region spanning parts of both Punjab and Haryana. This statistical anomaly defies random distribution and raises serious questions about the integrity of the selection process.
In a fair and transparent recruitment system, one would expect a relatively even distribution of successful candidates across Punjab’s diverse regions. Instead, the clustering of selections in specific geographic areas suggests either a serious flaw in the evaluation methodology or, more worryingly, deliberate manipulation to favor certain candidates.
The recruitment irregularities extend beyond geographical imbalances to touch upon a core aspect of Punjab’s identity: its language. The Punjab Learning of Punjabi and Other Languages Act, 2008, and the Punjab Official Language Act, 1967, were enacted specifically to safeguard the status of Punjabi in official matters and ensure that public servants could effectively communicate with the citizens they serve.
These laws mandated that candidates for government positions must have passed Punjabi as a compulsory subject at the matriculation level before the application deadline. This requirement was not merely procedural but represented Punjab’s commitment to preserving its linguistic heritage while ensuring effective governance.
However, recent recruitment drives appear to have either diluted this requirement or created loopholes that effectively bypass it. This represents more than a procedural irregularity—it strikes at the heart of Punjab’s cultural identity and administrative effectiveness. Government officials unable to communicate fluently in Punjabi cannot adequately serve a predominantly Punjabi-speaking population. The administration’s apparent willingness to overlook or weaken these language requirements suggests either a troubling indifference to Punjab’s linguistic heritage or an intentional effort to accommodate non-Punjabi speaking candidates. Either scenario represents a betrayal of the state’s cultural foundations and legislative mandates.
Perhaps most concerning is the government’s deafening silence on these issues. Despite mounting evidence of recruitment irregularities and growing public concern, official responses have been minimal, dismissive, or entirely absent. This silence, in the face of serious allegations affecting thousands of job seekers and the integrity of public institutions, suggests either complicity or a disturbing level of detachment from issues of fundamental importance to Punjab’s citizens.
When confronted with evidence of regional disparities in selections or questions about language requirement enforcement, officials have typically deflected with vague assurances about the process’s fairness without addressing the specific anomalies identified. This pattern of non-engagement effectively shields the recruitment process from meaningful scrutiny while leaving legitimate concerns unaddressed.
While the government focuses on publicity events and manages the fallout from recruitment controversies, Punjab’s fundamental challenges continue to deepen. The agricultural sector, once the state’s pride, faces declining productivity and sustainability concerns. Groundwater levels continue to deplete at alarming rates. Industrial growth remains stagnant, with new investments increasingly rare. Youth unemployment drives migration both interstate and international.
Drug addiction continues to ravage communities across the state, with prevention and rehabilitation efforts hampered by resource constraints—the same constraints that somehow don’t apply to publicity events. Healthcare and educational infrastructure, despite being featured in promotional campaigns, remains inadequate in many regions, particularly rural areas.
These systemic issues require more than ceremonial attention or public relations campaigns. They demand sustained policy focus, resource allocation, and administrative commitment—precisely the elements that appear to be diverted towards image management rather than substantive governance.
Punjab’s current trajectory is unsustainable, both financially and administratively. The state requires fundamental course correction that prioritizes fiscal discipline, administrative integrity, and long-term development over short-term publicity gains.
First and foremost, the government must address its financial management practices. The current rate of debt accumulation cannot continue without risking complete fiscal collapse. This will require difficult decisions about expenditure priorities, revenue enhancement, and possibly austerity measures in non-essential areas—including the elaborate PR machinery currently in operation.
Second, recruitment processes must be overhauled to ensure transparency, regional equity, and strict adherence to language requirements. Independent oversight mechanisms should be established to investigate the anomalies in recent selections and prevent their recurrence. Officials responsible for irregularities must be held accountable, regardless of their position or political connections.
Third, genuine development metrics should replace publicity events as measures of governmental success. School completion rates, healthcare outcomes, industrial growth, agricultural sustainability, and youth employment would provide far more meaningful indicators of progress than the number of ceremonies conducted or media mentions secured.
Finally, Punjab’s cultural and linguistic identity must be reaffirmed through not just symbolic gestures but substantive policies. The language requirements for public service must be enforced without exception, recognizing that linguistic compatibility between government officials and citizens is not a luxury but a necessity for effective governance.
Punjab has historically been a land of innovation, resilience, and cultural pride. Its people deserve governance that reflects these qualities—focused on substance rather than appearance, committed to integrity rather than expediency, and dedicated to sustainable progress rather than fleeting publicity.
The current emphasis on public relations over substantive governance does a disservice to both Punjab’s proud heritage and its future potential. A state once known as India’s breadbasket and a cultural powerhouse deserves more than ceremonial governance and financial mismanagement.
As debt figures continue to climb and recruitment irregularities remain unaddressed, the gap between Punjab’s needs and its administration’s priorities grows increasingly apparent. The solution lies not in more elaborate ceremonies or carefully managed media events, but in returning to the fundamentals of good governance: fiscal responsibility, administrative integrity, cultural authenticity, and genuine development.
Punjab needs more than PR—it needs leadership with the courage to confront its real challenges and the commitment to address them with more than just words and ceremonies. The people of Punjab, with their rich history of resilience and achievement, deserve nothing less.