Chandigarh April 11:
The SAD-BJP Government under Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal seems to have failed miserably in handling the State’s finances aptly as being depicted in official documents in possession with media.
The State continues to record over 40 per cent of revenue expenditure on salaries which should otherwise have been less than 35 per cent. The diversion of subsidies to show Punjab's improving fiscal condition comes as a glaring example of how the Government has been juggling with figures to project buoyancy in the State’s economy.
As per an official estimate, "the interest payment of `5,011 crore in 2010, which was 23 per cent of the revenue receipts during 2009-10, was still beyond the medium term target of 15 per cent of the revenue receipts to be achieved by during the period under review”. As the committed revenue expenditure continued to be high, leaving behind only a small share for the current operations, immediate measures need to be taken to compress the unproductive revenue expenditure.
The areas where Punjab Government is not able improve its record include going for expenditure without approval or provision of funds, unnecessary supplementary provisions or excess or inadequate re-appropriation of funds and anticipated savings not being surrendered by several departments. Though Punjab’s over-all fiscal condition remains challenging for all practical purposes, despite improvement on the front of revenue and fiscal deficit, the ruling SAD-BJP’s arch rival Congress party is not ready to buy any arguments over the consolidation of the State’s fiscal condition.
The Congress under the leadership of former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh not only boycotted the debate over the current budget in the State Assembly and also sought a white paper on the State’s economy which was not accepted by the ruling alliance. The Congress has accused the State Government of fudging data, while former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, who presented Punjab's last four budgets before getting sacked in October last year, too has questioned several claims in the State’s budget for 2011-12 fiscal.
As per the Punjab Budget Manual, expenditure should not be incurred on a scheme or service without provision of funds. It was, however, noticed that expenditure of `790.93 crore was incurred in 69 cases under eight grants during 2009-10, without making any provision in the original estimates or supplementary. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, too, has pointed out several lapses on the part of the State Government in finances.
“Supplementary provision aggregating to `771.49 crore obtained in 19 cases, `1 crore or more in each case, during 2009-10, proved unnecessary as the expenditure did not come up to the level of even the original provisions,” says the CAG, while commenting on Punjab’s fiscal condition. So is the case with the re-appropriation of funds, which is the transfer of funds within a grant from one unit of appropriation, where savings are anticipated, to another unit where additional funds are needed. According to CAG, 'injudicious re-appropriations effected by the departments proved excessive or insufficient' during 2009-10.
The SAD-BJP Government under Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal seems to have failed miserably in handling the State’s finances aptly as being depicted in official documents in possession with media.
The State continues to record over 40 per cent of revenue expenditure on salaries which should otherwise have been less than 35 per cent. The diversion of subsidies to show Punjab's improving fiscal condition comes as a glaring example of how the Government has been juggling with figures to project buoyancy in the State’s economy.
As per an official estimate, "the interest payment of `5,011 crore in 2010, which was 23 per cent of the revenue receipts during 2009-10, was still beyond the medium term target of 15 per cent of the revenue receipts to be achieved by during the period under review”. As the committed revenue expenditure continued to be high, leaving behind only a small share for the current operations, immediate measures need to be taken to compress the unproductive revenue expenditure.
The areas where Punjab Government is not able improve its record include going for expenditure without approval or provision of funds, unnecessary supplementary provisions or excess or inadequate re-appropriation of funds and anticipated savings not being surrendered by several departments. Though Punjab’s over-all fiscal condition remains challenging for all practical purposes, despite improvement on the front of revenue and fiscal deficit, the ruling SAD-BJP’s arch rival Congress party is not ready to buy any arguments over the consolidation of the State’s fiscal condition.
The Congress under the leadership of former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh not only boycotted the debate over the current budget in the State Assembly and also sought a white paper on the State’s economy which was not accepted by the ruling alliance. The Congress has accused the State Government of fudging data, while former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, who presented Punjab's last four budgets before getting sacked in October last year, too has questioned several claims in the State’s budget for 2011-12 fiscal.
As per the Punjab Budget Manual, expenditure should not be incurred on a scheme or service without provision of funds. It was, however, noticed that expenditure of `790.93 crore was incurred in 69 cases under eight grants during 2009-10, without making any provision in the original estimates or supplementary. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, too, has pointed out several lapses on the part of the State Government in finances.
“Supplementary provision aggregating to `771.49 crore obtained in 19 cases, `1 crore or more in each case, during 2009-10, proved unnecessary as the expenditure did not come up to the level of even the original provisions,” says the CAG, while commenting on Punjab’s fiscal condition. So is the case with the re-appropriation of funds, which is the transfer of funds within a grant from one unit of appropriation, where savings are anticipated, to another unit where additional funds are needed. According to CAG, 'injudicious re-appropriations effected by the departments proved excessive or insufficient' during 2009-10.
