THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the state government desperate to hold expenditure to rational levels, the Finance Department has decided to be tough on departments for failing to reconcile monthly accounts. The Finance Inspection Wing will conduct inspections in offices that have shown undue delay in reconciling accounts. Department heads have also been asked to send monthly reconciliation certificates to the office of the Accountant General by the end of the succeeding month.
A copy of the bills and vouchers related to each and every government transaction, made through the Treasury, will be filed in the AG’s Office, too. By month end, the figures on both sides should be tallied. “It has been found that despite repeated circulars and innumerable deadlines, there has been severe slackness on the part of most of the controlling officers and heads of departments to reconcile revenue and expenditure accounts in a timely manner,” a top Finance Department source said.
The Kerala Budget Manual stipulates that figures of expenditure recorded in books should be reconciled every month during the financial year with those recorded in the books of the AG. “This helps controlling officers to exercise effective control over expenditure and keep it within the budgeted limits. It also ensures the accuracy of accounts,” the source said. The Kerala Financial Code, too, insists that all heads of departments should exercise a close watch on revenue and expenditure figures.
Poor tax buoyancy, an heirloom handed down by the former UDF ministry, continues to haunt the LDF government. The rate of growth in tax collection is still a disappointing 10 per cent; Isaac had estimated a 20 per cent growth rate. “The GST, in a way, is a blessing as we are guaranteed 14 percent growth in tax. The Centre will compensate for the shortfall in collections,” the source said. However, even this will not be enough as the LDF has pledged massive social sector spending.
