Delhi government has no proof how Rs 19,000 crore was spent: CAG

NEW DELHI: The Delhi government does not have the evidence to show that grants worth nearly Rs 6,000 crore given by it were utilized for the intended purpose even 10 years or more after the amounts were given. This is among the shocking findings of a CAG report on the national capital’s finances for the year ended March 31, 2014.
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The report notes that of the 5,235 grants worth Rs 26,434 crore for projects released till March 2013, ‘utilization certificates’ for 4,784 grants worth Rs 19,064 crore, or about three-quarters of the amount, were outstanding till March last year. Certificates for about half of these grants — 2,267, amounting to Rs 5,651.17 crore, were outstanding for more than 10 years.
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Under government rules, where a grant is given, the department giving the grant must obtain a utilization certificate from the agency getting the grant, indicating that the grant had been used for the designated purpose and also certifying that conditions attached to the grant, if any, had been met. Without the certificate, the government does not really have the proof that its money has been spent as intended.
The major defaulter, according to the CAG report, was the urban development department accounting for Rs 17,415.91 crore or 91.4% of the amount for which certificates were outstanding. The erstwhile Delhi Vidyut Board did not furnish certificates of grants received from the department. The land and building department of DDA also did not furnish utilization certificates for grants received from the department, the report noted.
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Alarmed at this trend, CAG has a harsh recommendation: "Strengthen the internal control mechanism of the government departments to watch timely submission of utilization certificates and release further grants only after receipt of utilization certificates of earlier grants."

Incidentally, this is a problem that besets government finances not just in the capital, but all over the country, including central schemes such as MGNREGS.
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Missing utilization certificates are not the only problem with financial reporting in the Delhi government's books. The CAG also points out with much concern that large balances amounting to Rs 1,151.65 crore as on March 31, 2014 were outstanding under "suspense heads". In 2009-10, the balance under this head was Rs 101.02 crore, it rose to Rs 158.81 crore in 2010-11 and went up further in 2011-12 to Rs 215.62 crore. In 2012-13 it was Rs 273.78 crore and it suddenly shot to Rs 1,151.65 crore in 2013-14.
Taking note of this exponential rise, CAG explained that Delhi government had no separate public account and such transactions were carried out under the "Account of the Union Government". All such transactions are ultimately cleared either by payment of recovery in cash or by book adjustment.
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"These are recorded initially under the 'suspense heads' which are required to be reviewed at short intervals so as to ensure that no item remains unadjusted longer than is reasonably necessary," the CAG noted. In short, large amounts lying in suspense heads means nobody is quite sure which head of accounts they fit into, adding opacity to the accounts.
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The CAG report said the major portion of the outstanding amount under the head "cash settlement suspense account" pertains to the ministry of road transport and highways and to Delhi Police.