Funds released to Assam Zilla Parishads without approval of budgets: CAG

No Zilla Parishad (ZP) in Assam had its annual budget approved during 2018-23 even though funds were regularly released and utilised, in violation of the rule for mandatory approval of budget before any expenditure can be incurred, a CAG report said on Tuesday. 

The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on local bodies for the period 2021-22 to 2022-23, laid in the assembly, said only about 7 to 50 per cent of the ZPs submitted their budget to the Commissionerate of Panchayat and Rural Development (P&RD) for 2018-23. 

Due to not following the prescribed procedures while submitting the budget, none of the budgets were approved by the government, it said. 

However, the rules stipulate that no expenditure shall be incurred unless the budget is approved by the government.

"However, funds were regularly released and utilised by the PRIs irrespective of submission and approval of budgets indicating that rigour and discipline in the financial and budgeting process in the PRI ecosystem was yet to be firmly established," the report said. 

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The CAG report further said that the devolution of funds, functions and functionaries to the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) was still not complete in the state. Activity mapping of 23 out of 29 subjects was done but orders for devolution of only seven subjects were issued to the PRIs. However, no function has been transferred to PRIs till October 2023, it added. 

There were 456 outstanding utilisation certificates (UCs) amounting to Rs 3,971.52 crore as of March 2023 for grants paid from 2001-02 to 2021-22 to the P&RD Department. In the absence of the UCs, it could not be ascertained whether the recipients had utilised the grants for the purpose for which those were given, the CAG report said. It said 1,684 audit paragraphs pertaining to the period 2018-23 with a monetary value of Rs 1,660.80 crore were pending settlement as of March 2023 for want of replies or compliance. 

The report also noted that own sources of revenue of PRIs showed a declining trend during the last five years, indicating a lack of initiatives by PRIs to increase their own sources of revenue and reduce their dependence on government grants. It further said that though there is a provision in the eGramSwaraj for generating reports related to the creation of assets, the same was not generated. 

As the Assets Registers were not maintained, the assets of the PRIs could not be monitored, thereby leaving the possibility of misutilisation or mismanagement of assets, the CAG report added.