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Andhra Pradesh Public Accounts Committee Chairman Payyavula Keshav on Thursday requested Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan to order a full-fledged audit of the state Finance department, alleging that large sums in excess of ₹41,000 crore remained unaccounted for.
The PAC Chairman met the Governor at the Raj Bhavan in Vijayawada. He submitted a memorandum in this regard, attaching a letter written by the Principal Accountant General to the Principal Finance Secretary on the gross discrepancies in the accounts for 2019-20 and 2020-21 financial years.
"Large sums of money, to the extent of ₹41,043 crore, have not been accounted for as per the codal provisions. It appears that the said amount is being transferred or withdrawn in gross violation of Andhra Pradesh Treasury Code," Keshav, a TDP MLA, told the Governor.
He said such gross violations need to be checked on an emergency basis.
Or else, the violation of established procedures, codes, norms, rules and regulations might escalate in future, giving rise to huge-scale misappropriation of funds, the PAC Chairman apprehended.
Keshav sought a thorough audit to bring out the 'irregularities' and avoid future risks.
Irregularities
In the letter to the Principal Finance Secretary S S Rawat, Principal Accountant General Lata Mallikarjuna said they had noticed that 10,806 bills involving ₹41,043.08 crore were drawn under the special bill category without adhering to codal provisions.
The bills did not have any classification details, drawing and disbursing officer, beneficiary details, sanction or vouchers.
"Due to non-availability of the details for the said amount, the genuineness of the claims is susceptible of verification.
This depicts defective internal controls in the system of processing payments," the PAG noted.
She sought urgent remedial measures and plugging the loopholes in the system, considering the magnitude of the amount and the likely risks.
She stressed that strict enforcement of codal provisions to avoid such unusual drawals was required.
Of the total payments pointed out by the PAG, over ₹40,000 crore were made under the head AP Capital Region through 3,667 bills during the year 2020-21.
Later, talking to reporters, the PAC Chairman wondered if some offices were ran to the government.
"The government should answer how ₹41,000 crore went unaccounted for. Has it happened by mistake or deliberate choice?" he asked.
That there were no accounts available for such huge amounts could not be a mistake, Keshav remarked.
"I hope the Governor will not remain indifferent," he summed up.
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