Hyderabad: The finance department is likely to loose its sheen from the coming financial year of 2016-17. The Telangana government is devising plans to radically downsize the powers of the finance department in giving approvals and release of funds.
At present, though funds are allocated to each department in the Budget, respective depar-tments have to approach the finance department to secure approvals for spending the same.
Henceforth, the departments will be allowed to spend the allotted funds without seeking the finance department's approval.
However, there are fears of misuse of funds in the new system since the finance department is known for adopting tougher scrutiny norms before releasing funds.
Ministers, MLAs, MLCs and even some officials of other departments have been regularly complaining against the finance department to Chief Min-ister K. Chandrasekhar Rao that the department has been raising unnecessary queries on whatever proposals they send, seeking funds.
Also, the department allegedly takes months to approve funds, leading to severe and unnecessary delays in execution of various works and projects, which in turn brings disrepute to the TRS government.
Last month, irrigation minister T. Harish Rao too had lodged a complaint against the finance department over the issue of non-release of funds for irrigation projects and payment of compensation to owners whose lands are being acquired for projects.
While the CM had fixed targets of two to three years to the irrigation department to complete crucial pending projects, the minister brought to the CM’s notice that if the finance department prolonged the approval process like this, it would be tough to complete them even in five years.
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