A conference of Public Accounts Committee chairpersons from Parliament and 25 State legislatures has called for closer scrutiny of public spending, quicker action on audit findings, and the wider use of forensic tools to identify areas of governance requiring immediate legislative oversight, adopting a resolution to that effect at the end of a two-day meeting in Thiruvananthapuram.
“[Comptroller and Auditor General] CAG reports often reach us years after the money was spent, when officers have moved on and the trail has become untraceable. Venugopal, a senior Congress leader and chairman of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), speaking at the conference’s valedictory session. The PACs are responsible for auditing government revenue and expenditure and examining CAG audit reports. The conference, which was built on the theme, ‘Audit, Accountability and Good Governance: The Evolving Role of PAC’, concluded with the adoption of an eight-point resolution. Mr. He noted that a widely shared frustration by the PAC chairpersons was that the replies from Ministries and Departments to the PAC often come late, are incomplete, or do not come at all. To improve monitoring of audit findings, the participants called for the adoption of digital oversight systems on the lines of Parliament’s Audit Para Monitoring System (APMS) in all State and Union Territory legislatures. Another major recommendation was for a committee of Central and State PACs to meet at least once a year to discuss the implementation of Centrally sponsored schemes. Mr. Venugopal cited the example of the long delays in disbursal of pre-Matric and post-Matric scholarships for Scheduled Caste students. Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, Keralam Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan, and Keralam Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan were among the other dignitaries present at the conference.
Venugopal, on behalf of the PAC chairpersons, requested the Speaker to ensure that the PAC reports are debated in Parliament and the Assemblies so that accountability is fixed by the government and the public would come to know of the valuable work of the PACs.
There should be a robust mechanism to ensure that all this happens in a timebound manner,” said K.C. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, who listened to the deliberations, said that the recommendations from the conference would provide a clear pathway to improve the functioning of PACs and ensure that public money is used efficiently and for the right purpose. The scholarship was in some cases delayed by up to seven years, he said, adding that there was also a lack of coordination between the Union and State governments in this matter.
We were alarmed by the delays by a few governments in placing the reports before the House.
