Somanathan, T.V  <br/><br/>
A ‘balanced budget’ for the times  

 - Yojana  
 - 66(3), Mar, 2022: p.15-16 
<br/><br/> Budgets in a parliamentary democracy serve several purposes. Partly, they are an annual financial statement, a function which is routine but crucial; but they are also statements of policy intent. Unlike the private sector, governments cannot choose their customers-they must serve all. They have not the luxury of concentrating on “core competencies”-they have to do everything Parliament expects. They provide many things free-so demand is much higher than any feasible supply or affordability. They extract taxes-which are asunpopular as they are inevitable. For all these reasons, Budget-making is a hugely complex balancing act. – Reproduced