`11K-CRORE LIES IDLE IN STATE WINGS

Telangana state is facing a financial crunch yet several departments have diverted funds into Personal Deposit (PD) accounts — the number of PD accounts created is the highest in the country.

There are 28,087 PD accounts of various departments with nearly `11,000 crore lying in them. When the state government releases funds for development and for implementation of schemes, the departments divert the funds into PD accounts.

PD accounts are created to discharge the liabilities of the government arising out of special enactment by debit to consolidated fund.

The amount lying unspent after the purpose is met is required to be transferred to the government account.

Telangana State is facing a financial crunch yet several departments have diverted funds into Personal Deposit (PD) accounts.

As on March 31, 2017, the number of PD accounts in operation in TS was 28,087 and the balance lying in these accounts was `10,873 crore. In terms of money in PD accounts, TS is followed by West Bengal (`5,140 crore), Odisha (`1,047 crore), Gujarat (`395 crore), and Haryana (`235 crore).

In 2016-17 an amount of `8,545 crore was transferred from the Consolidated Fund to the PD accounts. The government is paying interest at the highest rate (7.40 per cent) on borrowings while keeping huge amounts in PD accounts which did not bear any interest.

As per the provisions of the Telangana financial code, the B type funds deposited in PD accounts should be credited into the state government account, if they remained unused for more than three financial years. The the ‘C’ category deposits should be credited back to the state government account, if they are unused in till the end of the next financial year. But many departments have neither spent the funds nor transferred the money to the state government account.