In a development that has sparked both confusion and concern, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema recently expressed an unusual sense of satisfaction after the state’s debt rose by a staggering ₹8,500 crore in just two months—August and September. The government, which had earlier projected a total debt burden of ₹34,201.11 crore for the entire financial year, seems to be well ahead of schedule in achieving this dubious milestone.
Cheema, while addressing the media, stated that the debt was being incurred to “strengthen the state’s infrastructure and welfare schemes.” Yet, critics argue that there is little on the ground to justify this borrowing spree. With limited visible development, deteriorating healthcare, struggling farmers, and pending payments to various state employees, the public is left wondering: where exactly is all this borrowed money going?
Instead of addressing concerns about debt sustainability, fiscal discipline, or revenue generation, the Finance Minister reportedly claimed that “this is a sign of economic activity and planning.” Experts and economists, however, see this narrative as a way of sugarcoating what essentially is financial mismanagement.
Punjab, already reeling under a mounting debt crisis—hovering around ₹3.5 lakh crore—has been borrowing aggressively without a clear roadmap for repayment. The irony lies in celebrating an increase in debt as though it were an award-winning economic strategy.
Who will return this loan?
That remains the golden question. Will it be the already burdened common man paying higher taxes and facing reduced services? Will it be future generations, who will inherit this mountain of debt without having had a say in its creation? Or perhaps, like a magician’s trick, the state expects the loans to vanish on their own?
Until answers come, all we can do is laugh through the pain.