President hails PAC for ensuring accountability at centenary event

NEW DELHI: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Parliament’s audit watchdog, has ensured more paise out of every rupee of public spending reach the people, President Ram Nath Kovind said on Saturday.

Parliamentary committees, especially the PAC, are crucial to ensure “administrative accountability of the executive towards the legislature,” Kovind said. The PAC, which had been chaired by stalwarts such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Murali Manohar Joshi and PV Narsimha Rao, is now led by Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

“If more paise out of every rupee coming from honest taxpayers are reaching those in need, and also for nation-building initiatives, the PAC and its members have played a large role in the process,” Kovind said in his speech at the centenary celebrations of the PAC in the Central Hall of Parliament.

Former Prime Minister Rajiv

Gandhi had once said that out of every rupee, only 16 paise goes to the people, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu recalled at the event.

“The Public Accounts Committee, along with the Public Estimates Committee and the Public Undertakings Committee constitute the triad of permanent vigilance over a wide range of governmental activities and the attendant expenditure,” Naidu said. Without these panels, “parliamentary democracy would be rendered incomplete,” Kovind said. His address assumes importance as Opposition parties have accused the government in the past two years of trying to push legislation bypassing the review of House panels.

Naidu suggested the panel should be redesignated as Public Accounts and Audit Committee.