THE last of the federal and provincial budgets, that of Balochistan, is in. Provincial Finance Minister Mir Asim Kurd Gailoo did the honours when he presented a Rs 152 billion budget, with a development component of Rs 26.7 billion, to the Balochistan Assembly, on Monday, with a deficit of Rs 7.1 billion. As expected, the salaries of government servants were increased to match the increase given by the federal government. The police and levies had their basic salaries doubled, a measure taken separately because of the war on terror. While the Balochistan police and levies are engaged in the war, and the raise was thus appropriate, the province could only afford them because the recent National Finance Commission Award had enabled it to afford the extra cost. The Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package announced by the President was represented, not just because of the money received under it from the federal government, Rs 12 billion along with the grant under the NFC, or the creation of 5792 new jobs. It may well be true that a PPP-led government is in office, while the package was announced by a PPP federal government, but there should not have been created a link between the package and 5000 jobs in teaching as has been done. One aspect in which the province has proved a holdout has been in the field of austerity measures. Whereas the federal cabinet had forgone the increase in salaries, the Balochistan cabinet apparently made no gesture in that direction, and quietly decided to become an even bigger burden on the people of the province. Thus, with the cabinet not setting an example, the question of making some saving by putting a freeze on other departmental spending, as done by other governments, did not even arise. The probability is thus multiplied of governments reneging on their promises, using the example of Balochistan as a readymade excuse. The Balochistan government still has time to rectify the flaws in its budget, including the absence of austerity measures, and bring the budget in line with the needs and aspirations of the people of the province.