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Railways had to spend over Rs 75 cr extra due to delays: PAC report

Delay in the provisioning of Availability Based Tariff (ABT) Metres by the West Central Railway resulted in an additional expenditure of Rs 75.10 crore on power purchase, according to a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report. The committee, which tabled its report in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, said the Railway Ministry had issued instructions in March 2015 to all zonal railways to get direct power from generating companies through open access and ensure the provision of ABT metres. The Ministry's instructions were aimed at reducing the traction tariff to optimise the unit cost of transportation. "Despite entering into an agreement in March 2016 under open access, power supply commenced only from January 2017 mainly due to a delay in the provisioning of ABT metres.The delay in shifting to open access resulted in an extra expenditure on power purchase amounting to Rs 75.10 crore," the report, which was based on a Comptroller and Auditor General of India report laid in Parliament in .

HC seeks LG's stand on DCPCR plea against inquiry, stoppage of funds

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought the stand of the city lieutenant governor on a petition by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) challenging an order to withhold funds to it pending an inquiry and a special audit over allegations of misuse of government funds. Justice Subramonium Prasad, while perusing a press note on the action ordered by Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena against the child rights body, observed that certain portions of the document took a political colour and asked the counsel for the LG to seek instructions. I would've said 'audit, go ahead'. (But page) 154 takes a political colour. That's when my problem begins...The usual foundation and motive problem (is there)," remarked the judge. The portion in question noted DCPCR's former chairperson Anurag Kundu and six members were politically affiliated with the Aam Aadmi Party(AAP). The counsel for the lieutenant governor said action was taken on the recommendation of other state authoritie

Himachal Pradesh govt raised Rs 13,055 crore debt in 2022-23: CAG

The Himachal Pradesh government raised loans amounting Rs 13,055 crore during 2022-23, increasing the debt burden from Rs 73,534 in 2021-22 to Rs 86,589 crore in 2022-23, Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) said in its report on Finance Accounts for 2022-23. The loan also included the loans raised in the last quarter of 2022-23. The report tabled in the Vidhan Sabha by Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that out of the total amount of Rs 50,539 crore spent during the year, more than 50 per cent was paid towards salaries and pension and expenditure on these heads increased after implementation of Sixth Pay Commission, which was followed by Himachal Pradesh. However, the revenue deficit, which was Rs 7,962 crore in 2021-22, was marginally lower at Rs 6,335 crore in 2022-23. The expenditure on salaries, which was Rs 11,641 crore in 2021-22, increased to Rs 15,669 crore in the last financial year after the revision of pay scales. Similarly, the cost of payme

CAG expresses concern about security, integrity of data due to AI malware

"The discussions emphasized the importance of international collaboration, capacity building and consultation with various stakeholders to derive optimum benefits from Al"

Cong attacks govt on transfer of officers involved in audit of Expressway

The Congress on Wednesday accused the government of intimidating officers of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), who had exposed "corruption" in various schemes, and demanded that their transfer orders be revoked. Citing a media report on the transfer of the officers, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh charged that it is the modus operandi of the Modi government to threaten and remove anyone who "exposes" them. "We demand that these transfer orders should be cancelled immediately, the officers return to the CAG and action must be taken on these mega scams relating to Dwarka Expressway, Bharatmala and Ayushman Bharat," he said in a post on X. The Congress leader charged that "the Modi government operates mafia style under a cloak of silence and intimidation. If anyone exposes its modus operandi of corruption, they are threatened or removed". The latest victims are three officers of the CAG, who exposed "massive scams" in government schemes in a report tabled during the

CAG suspects corruption in distribution of student scholarship in Odisha

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has suspected fraud and corruption in the implementation of the post-matric scholarship (PMS) scheme under direct benefit transfer (DBT) in Odisha. In its report on the performance audit of the implementation of DBT in payment of PMS to eligible students in the state, which was laid before the state assembly on Tuesday, the CAG said, "Due to the absence of detailed checklist for inspection of private educational institutions, 5,185 beneficiaries of 15 ineligible institutions, had been granted PMS, amounting to Rs 15.79 crore, during financial years 2016-17 to 2016-20." The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, in its revised guidelines issued in May 2018, made it mandatory for the inspection of private educational institutions by officials nominated by the district collectors. However, the CAG noted that there was no provision for inspection of private educational institutions, for sanctioning PMS. Joint physical inspections

Assam power projects suspended for failing to follow policy needs: CAG

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Monday said five small hydro power projects in Assam had to be abandoned or suspended due to non-adherence of statutory and policy requirements in project execution. It also pointed to delay ranging from six to nine years in commissioning of two other power projects. The observations were made in the CAG report on state public sector enterprises for the year 2021-2022, which was laid in the state Assembly on the first day of the autumn session. The report said Assam Power General Corporation Ltd (APGCL) had three operational power plants with installed capacity of 361.70 MW. Out of the capacity addition of 371.66 MW (five projects) planned during 2017-22, APGCL could commission only three projects (181.66 MW). Of these three projects, only the Lakwa Replacement Power Project was commissioned on time, while Namrup Replacement Power Project (NRPP) and Myntriang Small Hydro Electric Project were commissioned with a delay of six and nine ye

Presentation on CAG's 'Bharatmala Pariyojana' report made to Parl's PAC

A presentation of the recent CAG report on the 'Bharatmala Pariyojana' was made at a meeting of the Parliament's Public Accounts Committee headed by Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Tuesday, sources said. The audit report on the implementation of Phase-I of the 'Bharatmala Pariyojana' highway projects triggered a political row with opposition parties alleging corruption in the process of awarding the project. The Road Transport and Highways Ministry, however, has said the Comptroller and Auditor General's (CAG) findings that the cost was exorbitant are misplaced as it did not factor in the actual cost. The sources said at the PAC's meeting on Tuesday, there was a presentation on the CAG report, which was tabled in Parliament on August 10. The PAC is a committee of selected MPs that audits the revenue and expenditure of the government, and its primary function is to examine a report of the CAG after it is tabled in Parliament. During the meeting, they said, opposition members

Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin lashes out at BJP over CAG report

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday lashed out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party at the Centre citing the Comptroller and Auditor General Report. Flaying the Narendra Modi government, he sought to know what moral right the Prime Minister had to speak about corruption in the wake of CAG findings. "I want to know what moral right does the Prime Minister have to talk about corruption. The Comptroller and Auditor General Report has identified corruption in central government-run schemes," Stalin said at the wedding of CPI leader M Selvaraj near here on Sunday. "CAG operates under the Central government and it prepares a report every year on the performance of the government, it studies the income and expenditure of the government and then submits a report. That is the work of CAG. Today, the CAG says it is corrupt rule at the centre with several irregularities in government-run schemes. We are not saying this. Not even the Opposition parties, it is the CAG which has said,"

Radico Khaitan underpaid Rs 1,075 crore excise duty to UP govt: CAG

Interest is computed at the rate of 18 per cent per annum for delay in payment

Costlier land acquisition led to Bharatmala cost overrun: Official

According to the CAG report tabled in Parliament on August 10, only 75.62 per cent of the approved length has been awarded, whereas 158.24 per cent of outlay was sanctioned up to March 31, 2023

Highway ministry likely to respond to CAG concerns on Expressway costs

Awarded civil cost of Dwarka e-way 12% less than estimates, says top official

AAP questions Centre over discrepancies in Ayushman Bharat data by CAG

Questioning the Centre over the discrepancies in the database of the Ayushman Bharat scheme by the Comptroller and Auditor General, the AAP on Friday asked whether the government will initiate any probe into it. "The Centre formed the AB-PMJAY scheme to carry out a scam. But there won't be any investigation," chief spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar said addressing a press conference. "The CAG report has highlighted irregularities. I want to ask whether a probe will be ordered in this," she said. "The health scheme of Delhi government that has no restrictions should be implemented across the country," she added. The CAG has highlighted discrepancies including invalid names, unrealistic dates of birth, duplicate health IDs and unrealistic family sizes in the database of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY). Ineligible households were found registered as PMJAY beneficiaries and had availed the benefits ranging between Rs 0.12 lakh to Rs 22.44 crore under the scheme,

Failure to pay charges in time by Goa police led to late fee payment: CAG

The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) tabled in the Goa Assembly on Thursday said failure of the state police department to pay annual spectrum charges to the Union government resulted in avoidable payment of late fee of Rs 2.39 crore. The CAG report was tabled in the House by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on the last day of the Monsoon session. "The main duty of the state police force is to maintain law and order and wireless communication systems play an important role in this function. The Union ministry of communication is responsible for facilitating faster means of communication through the allotment of necessary spectrum," the report said. "The failure of the police department to pay spectrum charges in timely manner resulted in avoidable payment of Rs 2.39 crore as late fees for the period of 2018-19 to 2020-21. The department was required to pay annual licence fee plus royalty amounting to Rs 0.20 crore from 2004 to 2012 and Rs 0.47 crore from April 2012 to

CAG report flags shortcomings in Tourism Ministry's Swadesh Darshan Scheme

The Swadesh Darshan Scheme of Tourism Ministry was launched despite "objection of the Planning Commission/Ministry of Finance" and the ministry "did not act" upon the recommendation of a committee to formulate an umbrella scheme by merging the projects having overlapping objectives, a CAG report has found. The Performance Audit Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Swadesh Darshan Scheme, covering the period from its inception in January 2015 to March 2022, was tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, according to an official statement. The Swadesh Darshan Scheme, launched in January 2015 with an initial outlay of Rs 500 crore, is a central sector flagship scheme of the Tourism Ministry for the development of tourism infrastructure in the country. The ministry identified 15 tourist circuits for development under the Scheme, namely Himalayan circuit, North East circuit, Krishna circuit, Buddhist circuit, Coastal circuit, Desert circuit, Tribal circuit, Eco circuit, Wildlif

With operating ratio of 107.39%, Rlys couldn't make surplus in FY22: CAG

The Railways recorded an operating ratio of 107.39 per cent in 2021-22 which indicates a lower ability of the national transporter to generate surplus, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has said in a report. The CAG's report on railways finances presented in Parliament on Tuesday provides an analytical review of the finances and accounts of the Indian Railways and is based on the audited accounts for the financial year ended March 31, 2022. The report states that there was a loss of Rs 68,269 crore in all classes of passenger services during 2021-22. The auditor, however, said that this loss had decreased as compared to previous year. The CAG said that the entire profit of Rs 36,196 crore from freight traffic was utilized to cross subsidize/compensate the loss on operation of passenger and other coaching services. The loss of Rs 32,073 crore from passenger operations was left uncovered during 2021-22, it said. "The Railways' operating ratio (OR), which represents the ratio

Tea Board should have authentic database of industry for subsidy: CAG

The government auditor CAG on Tuesday said that the Tea Board should have authentic database of the industry for formulation of policies and implementation of various subsidy schemes. However, Tea Board did not maintain a database regarding areas of extensions of tea plantations, replacement and replanting of tea, age of tea bushes, district-wise yield, and labour productivity rate of the tea industry. It also said that the board has disbursed subsidy amounting to Rs 12.87 crore without adhering to certain guidelines under various schemes such as Plantation Development Scheme, Quality Upgradation and Product Diversification Scheme and Orthodox and Green Tea Production Scheme. It said that although the levy of fees for the issuance of planting permits was approved by the Board, non-collection of the same has resulted in the loss of revenue of Rs 41.36 lakh. "Due to delay in implementation of provisions of Goods and Services Tax (GST), Tea Board did not collect the same on licenses .

CAG asks FinMin to put in place online Customs refund system for efficiency

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has asked the Finance Ministry to consider having an online system for processing customs refunds along the lines of the GSTN system to make it more efficient. The official auditor has also flagged "inordinate delays" in the implementation of the module for daily updation of exchange rate and asked to make the system operational at the earliest. Under the Customs Act, refunds can be claimed in cases where the imported goods are found to be defective or not in conformity with the specification agreed upon, when the goods are exported after payment of the export duty/cess and the exported goods are returned to the exporter. A refund can also be claimed by a person who has paid duty on assessment of imported goods and applies for refund of duty consequent on remission /abatement of duty due to pilferage/damage of goods. "The Ministry may consider having an online workflow for capturing and processing refunds on the lines of the GSTN System so

Financial, operational turnaround of MSEDCL not achieved: CAG report

The compliance audit report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) for fiscal 2021 that was tabled in the Maharashtra Legislature on Friday said the financial and operational turnaround of state-run power distribution firm MSEDCL was not achieved despite implementation of the Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY). The report, which was tabled in the Assembly and the Legislative Council on the last day of the Monsoon session, said Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited, also called MahaVitaran, received Rs 4,960 crore from the state government under the UDAY scheme to repay its high cost debt. However, MSEDCL did not receive any other dedicated fund to achieve various operational parameters, which it had improve through its own resources or under other Central/state schemes, as per the report. The state-run power firm approached the state government in 2017 for availing guarantee for raising bonds of Rs 1,653 crore in accordance with the government .

CAG audit of Kejriwal's residence will expose AAP's corruption: Delhi BJP

The Delhi BJP on Wednesday welcomed the CAG audit into alleged irregularities in the renovation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's official residence, saying it will expose the "corruption" of the AAP government. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) is country's topmost audit body of high repute and its inquiry will soon reveal under whose "pressure" the officials "violated" laws and constructed the "palatial bungalow" for the chief minister otherwise eligible for only a 'Type VII' bungalow, said Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva. "The CAG must bring out the fact as to how repeated amounts were approved for the bungalow by the Kejriwal government whose ownership title was not clear and relevant authorities like Delhi Urban Arts Commission and Municipal Corporation of Delhi had rejected PWD sanction plan approval requests," he claimed welcoming the audit. Party MP Manoj Tiwari said earlier Kejriwal used to carry CAG reports levelling allegations of corruption against opposition