Srinagar, Feb. 11 -- The recently reported fiscal data on Jammu and Kashmir's budget for 2026-27 highlights a persistent structural dilemma. A substantial share of public expenditure is absorbed by salaries, pensions, interest payments and power purchases. Together, these non-discretionary expenditures consume the bulk of the region's financial resources, leaving limited fiscal space for development-oriented spending. This pattern reflects not merely a financial imbalance but a deeper governance and political economy challenge that has long constrained Kashmir's developmental trajectory. At the heart of this problem lies what can be described as a budgetary trap-a cycle in which recurring obligations crowd out productive investments, perp...