Finance department extends deadline for fund sanction

The state finance department has extended the deadline for issue of allotment, sanction and release of funds, re-appropriation of funds, surrender of provisions and drawal of funds for the remaining part of the current financial year.

The finance department had earlier set January 31, deadline, to avoid rush of expenditure towards the fag end of the financial year. It had issued instructions to all departments to avoid rush of expenditure in the last quarter of any fiscal as it defeats the objective of efficient and economic use of resources and also leads to unproductive and wasteful expenditure.

However, keeping in view the difficulties faced by different departments, it has been decided to extend the deadline.

While the deadline for issue of sanction orders for release and re-appropriation of funds and issue of allotment has been extended to February 25, that of online transmission of allotment data to treasury portal has been fixed as February 27.

On the other hand, the last date for surrender of un-utilized funds and surrender of provision of shortfall in the expenditure for the first three quarters of the financial year as required under the Cash Management System is February 29. For submission of bills to the Treasuries for 2011-12, the last date is March 12, for claims under other contingency, machinery, equipment, vehicle, share capital, subsidy and loan while for other claims it is March 15.

The state finance secretary J K Mohapatra has written to all department secretaries, urging them to follow the deadline scrupulously.

“Budgeted funds will not be allowed to be transferred to civil deposit under any circumstance and transfer of money drawn from treasury to civil deposit is banned at all levels. The concerned controlling officers will be held personally liable for unauthorized transfer of funds to civil deposit. The treasury officers/sub-treasury officers will also be liable for disciplinary action for violation of government orders in this regard,” the letter read.