Audit Reports
Uttarakhand
Report of 2010 - Financial Audit on State Finance of Government of Uttarakhand
Overview
This Report on the Finances of the Government of Uttarakhand is being brought out with a view to assess objectively the financial performance of the State during the year 2009-10. The aim of this Report is to provide the State Government with timely input based on actual data so that there is a better insight into both well performing as well as ill performing schemes/programme of the Government. In order to give a perspective to the analysis, an effort has been made to compare the achievements with the targets envisaged by the State Government in Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2005 as well as in the Budget Estimates of 2009-10. A comparison has been made to see whether the State has given adequate fiscal priority to developmental, social sector and capital expenditure compared to Himachal Pradesh, another special category State, comparable in many ways to Uttarakhand and whether the expenditure has been effectively absorbed by the intended beneficiaries.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C&AG) has been commenting upon the Government's finances for over three years since FRBM legislation and have published three Reports already. Since these comments formed part of the civil audit report, it was feltthatthe auditfindings on State finances remained camouflaged in the large body of audit findings on compliance and performance audits. The obvious fallout of this well-intentioned but all-inclusive reporting was that the financial management portion of these findings did not receive proper attention. In recognition of the need to bring State finances to center-stage once again, a stand-alone report on State Government finances is considered an appropriate audit response to this challenge. Accordingly, from the report year 2009 onwards, C&AG had decided to bring out a separate volume titled "Report on State Finances." This Report is the second in this endeavour.
The Report Based on the audited accounts of the Government of Uttarakhand for the year ending March 2010, this report provides an analytical review of the Annual Accounts of the State Government. The report is structured in three Chapters. Chapter I is based on the audit of Finance Accounts and makes an assessment of Uttarakhand Government's fiscal position as on 31 March 2010. It provides an insight into trends in committed expenditure, borrowing pattern besides a brief account of central funds transferred directly to the State implementing agencies through off-budget route. Besides, consequent upon the implementation of State's pay revision, there was substantial increase in revenue expenditure in 2009-10, which had a bearing on the fiscal position of the State. Chapter II is based on audit of Appropriation Accounts and it gives the grant-wise description of appropriations and the manner in which the allocated resources were managed by the service delivery departments. Chapter III is an inventory of Uttarakhand Government's compliance with various reporting requirements and financial rules. The chapter also provides details of non- submission of accounts. Besides, the cases of misappropriation/loss that indicate inadequacy of controls in the Government departments are also detailed in this Chapter. The Report also has an appendage of additional data collated from several sources in support of the findings.