Integrity of Plan expenditure doubtful, says CAG

NEW DELHI: In a report on Union government accounts tabled in Parliament last week, the comptroller and auditor general ( CAG) has raised serious questions on the government's claim of its expenditure, saying the "integrity of the data provided to audit on Plan expenditure was doubtful".


There is huge variation in Plan expenditure as per data maintained by different wings of the government. According to the finance accounts, the total Plan grants released for 2011-12 was Rs 2,41,668 crore. The actual expenditure was put at Rs 2,93,481 crore as per the e-lekha data dump. The plan expenditure according to the Central Plan Scheme Monitoring System (CPSMS) was Rs 3,27,011 crore. Interestingly, all these data were compiled by the finance ministry's controller general of accounts.

"The fact that three sources of data reflect a wide variation on key aggregates relating to the Plan expenditure points to serious deficiencies in compiling the information and disclosing the same," the CAG said in its report.

It questioned the authenticity of grants in aid expenditure by the government in recent years which have become the largest component of Plan expenditure. In 2011-12, this constituted 76% of the total Plan expenditure which was Rs 4,12,394 crore against the budget provisions of Rs 4,41,547 crore.

The Union government accounts are maintained by the controller general of accounts (CGA) in the finance ministry and its audit is done by the CAG which certifies the accounts after which it is tabled in Parliament. The last audited account giving details of actual receipts and payments is available for 2011-12 which was tabled in Parliament on August 13.

Besides the genuineness of the data, the CAG said there was no way to ascertain whether this money, a major part of which has been released to district implementing agencies in states and Union Territories directly, has been spent. The auditor has cited "absence of essential details such as category of agency receiving the funds, geographical location and agency-wise releases made" for implementing the schemes. "Thus, the correctness of the CPSMS data also could not be verified," CAG said.

The auditor added, "Given the difference in the three sets of data compiled by the CGA of accounts in the finance ministry, the integrity of the data provided to audit on Plan expenditure was doubtful."

The federal auditor was not satisfied by the response given by the CGA. "The reply of the CGA confirms that the data arising out of differing sources within its organization does not provide assurance of accuracy. Indeed, using data which lacks integrity for purpose of management of public expenditure and decision making is fraught with serious risks," CAG said.