CAG: Institute rigorous utilization certificates monitoring mechanisms

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India said that the Assam Government may institute a rigorous monitoring mechanism to ensure that the departments comply with the prescribed rules and procedures with regard to the submission of fund utilization certificates.

The CAG made this recommendation to the State Government as its various departments are still required to submit utilisation certificates (UCs) of grants aggregating Rs 36,687.84 crore, involving 13,682 UCs during the period from 2001-02 to 2020-21. CAG’s Assam State Audit Report for the year ended March 31, 2022, has revealed this.

According to the report, Rule 517 (Appendix 16) of the Assam Financial Rules provides that every grant made for a specified object is subject to the implied conditions that (i) the grant shall be spent for the intended purpose and within a reasonable time if no time limit has been fixed by the sanctioning authority, and (ii) any portion of the amount that is ultimately not required for expenditure for the purpose shall be duly surrendered to the Government.

State Government authorities that have received conditional grants are required to furnish formal UCs about the proper utilization of the grants to the Accountant General (A&E) within 12 months of the closure of the financial year in which the grants were released, unless specified otherwise.

Audit scrutiny revealed that 13,682 UCs in respect of grants aggregating Rs 36,687.84 crore given to 52 departments of the State Government during the period 2001-02 to 2020-21 had not been submitted. In the absence of UCs, it could not be ascertained whether the recipients had utilized the grants for the purposes for which they were given and whether assets had been created.

According to the CAG report, the year-wise breakup of the outstanding UCs is: Rs 54.26 crore in 2001-02, Rs 36.22 crore in 2002-03, Rs 197.07 crore in 2003-04, Rs 145.80 crore in 2004-05, Rs 203.12 crore in 2005-06, Rs 194.27 crore in 2006-07, Rs 220.85 crore in 2007-08, Rs 305.75 crore in 2008-09, Rs 447.19 crore in 2009-10, Rs 395.16 crore in 2010-11, Rs 583.03 crore in 2011-12, Rs 827.68 crore in 2012-13, Rs 1237.32 crore in 2013-14, Rs 1590.81 crore in 2014-15, Rs 2884.07 crore in 2015-16, Rs 104.93 crore in 2016-17, Rs 1809.25 crore in 2017-18, Rs 4612.69 crore in 2018-19, Rs 9789.57 crore in 2019-20 and Rs 11048.80 crore in 2020-21.

Also Read:   Most of xatras to lose annuities due to non-submission of UCs

Also Watch: