CAG report brings government's Rs 3 lakh crore plan spend into question

NEW DELHI: The government will table six CAG reports in Parliament on Friday. The report on Union accounts for 2012-13, late by almost a year, will be significant as the auditor had raised questions on the authenticity of the Centre's Plan expenditure to the tune of Rs 3 lakh crore.

At the draft stage of the report, the federal auditor had said a detailed scrutiny of union accounts revealed that government in several cases was giving post-dated sanctions. In some instances, sanctions were granted by the finance department authorizing expenditure later than March 31, 2013 when the expenditure was for the period between 2010 and 2013.

In one such case, expenditure was made in the years 2000 and 2001 while sanctions were given in 2010-13, the auditor had told the finance ministry.

In another important report, the auditor has reviewed the global estate management of the ministry of external affairs. Besides, there will be one report on the finances of the public sector enterprises and one on the customs department.

The government will also table three reports on Delhi government departments since the state is under President's rule. The Delhi government had spent over Rs 3,000 crore between 2007-13 on its flood management and on providing basic services like sewer lines, water connections, roads and drainage in its all 895 unauthorised colonies.

Providing these basic services was mandatory before legalising them as per an apex court order. However, the CAG audit on these colonies has revealed that majority of the surveyed unauthorised settlements have no such services available, or the works initiated left incomplete and in some cases probably they were never constructed by the state authorities.

The state government had in 2012 regularised 312 colonies on private lands and 583 partly or fully on public lands.

The CAG scrutiny revealed that state government spent over Rs 3,029 crore but works related to roads and drainage were incomplete in almost 46% of the 891 unauthorised colonies. About 90% of these colonies had no functional sewer lines and at least 197 out of 895 colonies had no water lines.

CAG reports to be tabled in Parliament today:

- Accounts of the Union Government

- Financial Reports of Central Public Sector Enterprises

- Indirect Taxes - Customs

- Compliance Audit Observation (Commercial)

- Performance audit report on Global Estate Management by Ministry of External affairs

- Commercial and IT sector, Compliance Audit

- Report on Delhi Govt finances and on its social and economic sector