BHUBANESWAR: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has pulled up the Odisha government for failing to submit utilisation certificates (UCs) worth over Rs 12,361.26 crore against grants given to various departments.
According to the CAG report for 2023-24 tabled in the Assembly recently, as many as 11,014 UCs are pending, including 3,314 UCs of Rs 548.54 crore for more than 10 years, and 2,560 UCs of Rs 2,746 crore for more than five years.
“This indicates lack of internal control of administrative departments and tendency of the government to disburse fresh grants without ascertaining proper utilisation of the earlier grants,” the CAG said.
Five departments accounted for around 79 per cent of pending UCs amounting to Rs 9,782.15 crore. The Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water department has not submitted UCs worth Rs 4,380.54 crore, followed by Housing and Urban Development (Rs 3,093.79 crore), Planning and Convergence (Rs 935.39 crore), Women and Child Development (Rs 823.01 crore) and Mission Shakti (Rs 549.42 crore).
There were 13 departments against which UCs were pending in the office of the principal accountant general (A&E) for more than 10 years. Of these, the five major departments that failed to submit UCs for more than 10 years are Housing and Urban Development (Rs 212.42 crore), Planning and Convergence department (Rs 163.53 crore), Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water (Rs 129.33 crore), Odia Language, Literature and Culture (Rs 18.7 crore) and Revenue and Disaster Management (Rs 13.38 crore).
“In case of non-submission of UCs, there is a risk that the amount shown in the finance accounts may not have reached the beneficiaries and may not have been spent for the intended purposes. The state government should monitor this aspect closely and hold the concerned persons accountable for non-submission of UCs in a timely manner,” the report stated.
The audit also noticed that supplementary provisions of Rs 16,328.90 crore during 2023-24 in 15 cases (more than Rs 100 crore in each case), proved unnecessary, as the expenditure did not come up even to the level of the original provision.
Excess disbursements of Rs 262.65 crore, pertaining to 2013-14 to 2020-21 (no excess expenditure during 2019-20, 2021-22 and 2022-23), and Rs 6.69 crore pertaining to the financial year 2023-24, are yet to be regularised by the state legislature. “Excess expenditure, remaining un-regularised for extended periods, dilutes legislative control over the executive,” the report added.
GROSS NEGLIGENCE
As many as 11,014 utilisation certificates (UCs) are pending
These include 3,314 UCs of Rs 548.54 cr for over 10 yrs, and 2,560 UCs of Rs 2,746 cr for more than 5 yrs
Five depts accounted for around 79 pc of pending UCs amounting to Rs 9,782.15 cr
There were 13 depts against which UCs were pending in the office of the principal AG (A&E) for over 10 yrs