India, March 26 -- Given Punjab's financial bind, the budget presented by finance minister Harpal Cheema on Wednesday could not have been more balanced, realistic, or transparent. While the state's debt-to-GSDP ratio remains alarmingly high, second only to one other state, it must be viewed in the correct context. This is a legacy burden. Those who left the cupboard bare now occupy the opposition benches or have been relegated to the footnotes of Punjab's political landscape. Their present indignation stands in stark contrast to their past inaction.

The budget team has had to navigate a minefield of unpaid liabilities - dues to the power sector, pending scholarships, subsidies yet to be honoured, and treasury bills carried over from earl...