Under Oppn fire, Mann govt asks CAG to tweak fiscal accounts format

CHANDIGARH : The Punjab government, which drew flak from the opposition parties over its financial performance in the first half of 2022-23, has asked the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) to modify its format for financial accounts of the state, citing the likelihood of its “misinterpretation” in the current format.

The state’s finance department is learnt to have conveyed its reservations to the office of Principal Accountant General (Accounts and Entitlements), Punjab, about their way of presenting the financial accounts of the state, especially comparative data.

“The present format for preparing accounts and fiscal parameters does not give the complete picture. We have requested them to simplify the report so that it is self-explanatory and the possibility of its misreading by anyone is minimised,” said two officers privy to the matter, who did not want to be named.

A senior officer in the PAG office said the finance department of the state government took up the report on fiscal indicators and suggested changes for proper comparison of fiscal performance with that of the previous period.

“Their suggestions are under consideration. We are contemplating making some modifications but will need approval from the office of CAG as the same format is used across the country,” he said on the condition of anonymity.

The state authorities took up the matter with the office of PAG, which is responsible for compiling accounts of state governments, three weeks ago after unaudited provisional unaudited figures for the first sixmonth period (April-september) of the new Bhagwan Mannled Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government were released. The government came under fire from the opposition parties, particularly the Congress, for, what they termed, the “shrinking” revenue collections besides other parameters.

A finance department official said that comparative data related to the percentage of actual to budget estimates was misread by some sections, creating a skewed impression, as targets in the current year were high than the previous fiscal. “In the first half of 2022-23, for instance, against the full-year target of ₹60,345 crore, tax revenues stood at ₹25,584 crore and were significantly higher than the figure of ₹21,057 crore in the corresponding period of last year. However, the percentage of actual to budget estimates, which were 42% for both periods, created an erroneous impression in the absence of budget estimates and actual collection for the first half of 2021-22,” the officer said, explaining the rationale behind seeking the change.

The state of finances is a politically sensitive subject in debt-ridden Punjab, where successive governments have presented white papers after taking over the reins of the state and blamed their predecessors for the dismal fiscal health.

The present format for preparing accounts and fiscal parameters does not give the complete picture. We have requested the auditor to simplify the report so that it is self-explanatory and the possibility of its misreading by anyone is minimised PUNJAB FINANCE DEPT OFFICIAL